How Reyes Got His Groove Back

Jim Baumbach at Newsday writes about Jose Reyes going back to his old self:

"I'm going to be the old Jose Reyes," he said after the Mets' 5-2 win over the Nationals last night, won by John Maine, who earned his first win by allowing two runs and five hits in 6 2/3 innings. "I'm going to enjoy my game. I'm going to dance during the game. I'm going to do the handshakes with everybody. I'm going to keep everybody going with smiles in the dugout."

Beltran approached Reyes early Tuesday afternoon and said he pleaded with him to go back to his old self - the enthusiastic, energetic, always happy Jose Reyes.

Well we couldn’t have thought that this serious Reyes would last very long. It’s just not in him. It could just be a coincidence that when he brings back excited Reyes that he starts to tear the cover off the ball again. I guess we will never know.

I'm Starting To Freak Out A Little

With Spring Training nearing to a close and the season starting in a little less than two weeks, maybe it’s time that I start to get a little worried about some of the key players who still haven’t made their debut yet. I was reassuring myself when all of the injuries rose to the top that it was still early in ST to start freaking out, but it’s gone on for too long.

How is Duaner Sanchez still not ready to make a complete comeback? I understand that he had two surgeries since that fateful night in Miami, but I thought that he was in phenomenal shape and wouldn’t have a problem anymore? He’s sporting an ERA in the upper six’s and he needs frequent rest between appearances. This doesn’t exactly exemplify an elite set up man or any kind of reliever for that matter.

Carlos Delgado can’t win, can he? The guy goes through his worst season, has a balky hip, broke his hand in the last day of the season and now he gets brutalized by a broken bat. Besides this, he’s hitting on the Mendoza line. Can someone please give him an umbrella to protect him from that rain cloud that seems to be over his head?

Where in God’s green earth is Luis Castillo? He had his knees cleaned out over the off season like Carlos Beltran, but Beltran has found his way back into the lineup. If he doesn’t put a rush on it, he may be having Spring Training in the first month of the season and that’s never a good thing for the team.

The next thing we are going to hear about El Duque is that he needs to be put on a dialysis machine or in an iron lung with the way he’s going. So let me get this straight. You have surgery on your foot, but you don’t get the bunion removed? I don’t get it. Now because of the bunion he has to alter his delivery, which means no more almost kneeing himself in the face. And I know everyone has been beating this point like a piñata, but when a pitcher has to alter his delivery at the end of his career it can hardly ever end up being a good thing.

Both Brian Schneider and Ramon Castro are out with leg injuries and I’m about to have a freaking heart attack. First of all, Schneider has to get used to this bunch of pitchers. Especially with three of them (maybe) being the accomplished gamers that they are, need him to be able to know how they like to go about attacking the batters. The Mets can’t afford for Castro to be on the shelf if Schneider is already there. Who are we going to see come up from the minors to replace them then? There is no Alomar Jr. or Di Felice anymore and no matter how atrocious their hitting was, they were pretty decent defensive catchers.

With all of this going on, I don’t know what to think. Hopefully they can pull it all together before the beginning o the season. But if they don’t, this team is going to resemble the Padres in a hurry. All pitchingandnobats.

Beltran And His Recovery

David Lennon at Newsday writes about Carlos Beltran and how he is worried about his recovery:

The Mets' company line is not to worry, but Beltran said yesterday that he still is not capable of "stop-and-go" running in the outfield and must teach himself how to slide again. Beltran's knees, surgically cleaned up in October, are not the problem. It's everything else involved with the recovery process.

"When you have surgery, you lose all the muscle in your quads, everything goes away," Beltran said. "Because the knees are fixed, the sensation of tendinitis I was having, I don't have anymore. But if I don't strengthen my quads, then all the pounding is going to be in the knees, and I'm going to aggravate the knees again."

Beltran has been showing up early, before everyone else, doing his exercises and taking his scheduled dips in the hydrotherapy pool, along with about a dozen other Mets. When it's time for the rest of the team to prepare for that day's game, Beltran and his injured comrades are herded off for more rehab.

A More Vocal Beltran

John Harper at The Daily News writes about Carlos Beltrand and how he's stepping up:

In fact, the Quiet Man understands that he has put himself front and center in a rivalry that is beginning to percolate, and he seems to be embracing the idea.

"I know probably when we go to Philly I'm going to hear a lot of things," Beltran said with a smile yesterday. "But that's all right, I'm not worried about that.

"This is good for baseball. A lot of people are focusing on the steroids thing. We're putting the focus back on the game."

He's right about that. Fans are surely starving for reasons to pay attention to the game again, not steroids, and this byplay between Beltran and Rollins whets the appetite for the Mets' home opener at Shea in six weeks against guess who.

Does He Throw A Slider?

David Lennon at On The Mets Beat writes about Billy Wagner's live batting practice session:

It was no contest. Pitchers are clearly ahead of the hitters at this point and Billy Wagner proved that emphatically this morning. Facing the top four in the lineup, few even bothered to swing, and the hardest hit ball was Jose Reyes' chopper to second base. "That's an out right?" Wagner said smiling.

Even Carlos Beltran left the cage wondering what he was looking at. "Does he throw a slider?" Beltran asked. Pitching coach Rick Peterson assured Beltran that he did.

Joking Around, Rollins Calls Beltran A Plagiarist

Rob Maaddi at Slams Sports writes about Jimmy Rollins response to Carlos Beltrans somment on the up-coming season:

"Has anyone ever heard of plagiarism?" Rollins said, breaking into a laugh.

The NL MVP treated Beltran's in-your-face message that the New York Mets are the team to beat in the NL East like a take-out slide at second base.

He eluded it nicely, but mixed in a jab the way some middle infielders purposely land on a hard-charging runner at second base.

"Sequels are never good," Rollins said, crediting teammate Brett Myers with that statement first.

To Be Refrenced In September

From Don Kachuba at Gets By Buckner (Network Member):

Everyone laughed at me, when I had brought it up at the end of the 2007 season. But watch Nick Johnson this season- aside from witnessing the superior glove to the Mets counterpart- watch Delgado's offensive ineffectiveness and inconsistency hurt Beltran. Everyone will be wishing a .280-.300 hitter was protecting Beltran. Instead it'll be a .250-.270 hitter. Their HR numbers shouldn't be far apart either. Factor Johnson out of RFK and with a Mets lineup as opposed to a Nats lineup, and I don't see how he could not be a more valuable guy than what I project from Delgado.

Wilpon could have paid half of Delgado's salary to some team he traded him away to, AND acquired Johnson's 5 million dollar a year contract, it still would have saved the Mets 1-3 million dollars overall, than if they held onto all off Delgado's 08 salary and never acquired Johnson.

Who could the Mets have traded for Johnson? I'm guessing nothing that would be of an earth-shattering loss to the organization. Figure it out. And I'm also guessing with Dmitri Young finishing in the top ten in hitting last season, a cheap team like Washington would be willing to let go of a 5 million dollar contract for the quantity of a few mediocre minor leaguers, since tthey have another first base option in a guy who produced so well on the cheap.

Who could the Mets pawn Delgado off to? Well Toronto wouldn't have been a bad start. He has played there, has a fan following, and the frank Thomas contract ran out. Why not dangle him to be a DH man at half his salary? Just inquire is all I asked.

Of course the health is the big issue. But Johnson broke his leg two seasons ago. I'm banking on him being capable of playing 150 games. He is NY proven. And speaking of health concerns, Delgado's hand surgery killed his ability to turn on an inside pitch anyway, plus he broke his hand again on that miserable final day against the Marlins.

Mets Will Not Part With Wright, Reyes Or Beltran For Santana

Mark Hale at The New York Post writes about the Mets and what they won't part with to get Johan Santana:

Santana has one year left on his deal at $13.25 million, so a negotiating window (typically 72 hours) would be needed for the Mets to try to come up with a new pact. If the Mets are to trade for Santana, though, they will not be including any of their three core offensive players in the deal: Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran would all be off limits. Beltran actually has a no-trade clause anyway, as does Santana.

Wright And Beltran Take Home The Gold

Marty Noble at Mets.com writes about David Wright, Carlos Beltran and them both recieving the Gold Glove for the 2007 season

"I'd like to be known," he said, "as a player who does everything above average. And I think going 30-30 would be an indication that I do at least two things well."

And now there is an indication, not to mention tangible evidence, that Wright excels in another facet of the game: defense. The Mets' third baseman has won a Gold Glove.

"I really take pride in my defense and I try to keep improving and improving each season." Beltran said. "It's nice to be recognized for your hard work."

Wright became the second Mets third baseman to win a Gold Glove; Robin Ventura won in 1999, the same year shortstop teammate Rey Ordonez won his third. This year and 1999 are the only years the Mets have had more than one winner. The club now has won 17, six by first baseman Keith Hernandez (1983-1988). Beltran and Ordonez are the only other Mets to win more than one.

Mets Are Interested In Jones

According to MLB Trade Rumors, the Mets are interested in Andruw Jones.

Now this wouldn’t have been a shock to me if the Mets were in the middle of a trade rumor with a team for a front of the line starter and had been planning on using Carlos Beltran as their main bargaining chip, but instead they are willing to move Beltran over to right field to make room for Jones and his perennial Gold Glove fielding.

The only rationalization I can come to with this rumor is that of Beltran’s knees and that the Mets don’t quite know how much longer they can take the abuse of patrolling Center Field in Shea and later Citifield.

This does, however, bring a thought to mind about Jones. If the Mets do obtain him and last year wasn’t just an off season for him, what do the Mets do? The Mets have been known for taking on fading stars at the highest price and I just feel as though Omar is a little desperate to try and make last season a memory that he would be willing to pay this Scott Boras client whatever he wants.

Bad move all around. The money should clearly be spent on a pitcher to extend their contract when and if the Mets make a move for one.

At any rate, I don’t see anything coming out of this rumor, for the simple fact that the Mets don’t need an outfielder and that I am confident that Omar will address the mets needs this offseason.

Beltran May Need Surgery

At Rotoworld they write about Carlos Beltran and his knees:

Carlos Beltran will likely need surgery to correct the knee issues that bothered him for much of the 2007 season, according to general manager Omar Minaya.

Beltran struggled with tendinitis in his left knee for most of the season. Often tendinitis will go away with rest, but in some cases surgery is necessary to correct the issue. He will likely undergo tests in the next couple weeks to determine what is the best treatment for his knee.

Is Beltran Available?

From Ed Ryan at Mets Fever (Network Member):

I'm paraphrasing and he was totally speculating but Eddie C. (WFAN 660AM) during his report on the Mike and the Mad Dog show floated the idea of trading Carlos Beltran.

Eddie C. believes that after this season's debacle Omar will be very aggressive in pursuing trades. Beltran's still young but considered an established veteran and his contract is reasonable given the current market, which makes him a very big bargaining chip. The Mets have Chavez, Gomez and Milledge who could play center field. The idea he floated was something like Santana for Beltran type of deal.........

I'd love to have Santana and it sounds like he's going to be moved sometime this off season (if the reports are correct). The Mets were able to broker a deal this year for Castillo, so the teams have an established relationship. Beltran came up through KC and is familiar with the AL central, which would make him appealing to the Twins. The Mets have a glut of center fielders with Chavez, Milledge and Gomez. I'd prefer to give up one of the younger players because it's unknown what type of major league hitter they will become, while you know with Beltran your getting at least .275 with 30 HRs. If Beltran's gone and his replacement is only hitting .250 with 15 HRs, this offense is in trouble.......

Should Beltran be available or is he untouchable ?

Beltran's Early Exits

David Lennon at Newsday writes about Carlos Beltran and what Omar Minaya had to say about his early departures this past series:

This was the third consecutive game that Beltran has had to leave early, but general manager Omar Minaya insists Beltran is playing through considerable pain. "If anyone questioned the guy's toughness, you're in the wrong business," Minaya said. "If anyone thinks Carlos Beltran is soft, go report on jai alai. Just going out there and going that extra mile. I've been around the game a while and I haven't seen a guy grind it out and tough it out like he has the last three years."

Beltran Pulls A Willis Reed

Carlos Beltran is answering the call when it counts the most, when the club is playing every game clinging to their playoff life.

In 2005 Beltran signed a huge contract, to play on a bad team and be the center piece of the organization as it rebuilt. At some point during that year Beltran injured his quad, he felt an obligation due to the contract to play through it, without saying a word to anyone. The result was an awful year and the disdain of many fans. This was compounded by a horrific face first collision with Mike Cameron, after which he now pulls up if another outfielder gets too close (can't blame him).

But since 2005 Beltran learned his lesson and takes his time coming back from tweak type injuries, many feel his return is too slow and he's a soft player. Well, it's not May or June with a ten game lead and Beltran's knee looks bad, but it's going to be hard to keep him out of the line-up.

CARLOS BELTRAN RE-INJURED HIS KNEE: ``I told the guys that the only way I wouldn’t be there tomorrow is if they cut it.’’

OMAR MINAYA ON CARLOS BELTRAN’S TOUGHNESS: ``I’ve been in this game a long time, and what we’ve seen the last two games from Beltran … that’s toughness. He saved the game yesterday and he inspired us and saved the game today.’’ source John Delcos Lo Hud Journal

Rant On Carlos Beltran's Mole

From Dave at Mets Lifer (network Member):

I'm still wiping the tears from my eyes because I was laughing so hard when I visited fellow Mets blog, Yes Joe, It's Toasted and came across his list of Carlos Beltran's mole facts.You have to read them for yourself by visiting Yes Joe, It's Toasted. Just look for the list of Carlos Beltran's mole facts on the right side bar.

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

Award Season Is Coming - Part One - The Gold Glove Award

Yes, award season is almost upon us. No, I’m not talking about the Emmys, or the Grammy’s, or the VMA’s (although Brittney’s agents should be shot after letting her perform in the condition she was in) – as it’s getting close to the time when baseball recognizes its’ top in-season performers with various awards, from fielding to hitting. By now, you’ve read all about everyone’s predictions, and as you know from reading many of our columns, we try to be as objective as possible when stating whom we feel would be the best candidate for each award. However, it’s very hard NOT to be subjective when a Carlos Beltran gets robbed of an MVP award or you watch a Rafael Palmiero win a Gold Glove at first base when he only manned the position that year for 28 games (he DHed the rest of the way) after winning it 3 previous seasons in a row. Therefore, rather than simply stating WHO we pick for each award, we’d like to offer a history of some of these awards (info courtesy of Baseball Almanac), as well as our picks, if any, from our own beloved Mets. Of course, after bragging rights are over, the main purpose for choosing these awards is to put more money in millionaires pockets (although it’s always cool when your team wins an award, especially if it’s the only thing your team won that season). Without further ado, today we’ll discuss the Gold Glove Award…

Gold Glove:
The Mets have had 8 players win a Gold Glove Award (15 awards total):

Tommie Agee (OF-1971),
Buddy Harrelson (SS-1971),
Doug Flynn (2B-1980),
Keith Hernandez (1B – 1983 – 1988),
Ron Darling (P-1989),
Rey Ordonez (SS-1997-1999),
Robin Ventura (3B-1999)
and
Carlos Beltran (OF-2006).

This season, we believe the following Mets should be up for consideration:

SS:Jose Reyes,
3B David Wright
OF Carlos Beltran.

If Endy Chavez had played an entire season, obviously we’d push for him as well, and although Wright has made a number of errors this season, his spectacular plays (made routine) far outweigh these errors. It’s actually amazing that Beltran hasn’t won more than one award for his awe-inspiring fielding, which shows what it means to play in the biggest market in the game. Reyes is an amazing shortstop, and unless you watch him regularly, his hitting and base-stealing prowess overshadow his consistency and brilliance in the field (only 8 errors this season, with many spectacular plays).

We’re Not The Only Ones
On a similar note, in today’s Los Angeles Times, writer Mike DiGiovanna, who covers the Angels, details the plight of the (Los Angeles) Angels (of Anaheim via the 5 Freeway Unless It’s Crowded then You take the 91) shortstop, Orlando Cabrera, and his pursuit of a second gold glove, which should have been awarded to him long ago but hasn’t because he has become lost in his own market, the second largest in the game, as a result of playing in the shadow of the Yankees' Derek Jeter. To read this article, click here. It's nice to know that we're not the only contending team that gets so little respect...

The History
I have always felt that the Gold Glove award is by far the most subjective, and not objective, of all of baseball's awards, as there is still not a good enough barometer in place to determine who is truly the best fielder at their position. If two shortstops are compared to each other, one might have a far superior range than the other one, but may have made many more errors as a result of his trying to utilize that range to make plays the other player would never have had a chance at making. Recently, there have been improvements in helping determine who should win a Gold Glove, via statistics, including zone coverage, instead of just how many or few errors one made and what their accompanying fielding percentage is. However, these measuring sticks still fall far short of being an accurate barometer of defensive prowess. Some people think that Jimmy Rollins is the best defensive shortstop in the NL (9 errors); I personally believe that our own Jose Reyes is the best defensive shortstop in the NL (8 errors); others might still vote for (the now ancient) Omar Vizquel, based solely on his reputation and not on his actual performance, and this has been one ongoing criticism of these awards for as long as they have been around.

It’s easy to determine who the Home Run champion is – the person who has hit the most homers, not the person who hit the most in day games or versus left-handed pitching. This would be considered a very objective award, as no one is going to question how the decision as to who hit the most home runs is derived, whereas who wins a Gold Glove is far more subjective and, if you will, mysterious (for lack of a better term) when all is said and done.

The fabulous Baseball Almanac offers the following, as to the origins of this award– click here -

“The Gold Glove Award was first presented by the St. Louis-based Rawlings Corporation in 1957 to honor the eighteen best fielders at their positions. Rawlings used a combination of defensive statistics along with visual effect to determine the winner and honored the recipient with a large gold glove. Voting is currently done by the managers and coaches from each Major League team who are NOT able to select their own players."

It will be interesting to see who receives these awards this season, as stalwarts such as Greg Maddux have become long-in-the-tooth, and there is definitely an opportunity to “anoint” some new blood this season. I am watching this category closely, and before this season is over, we’ll give you our choices at each position.

Tomorrow: MVP & Cy Young Awards

Note To Other Teams: Be Afraid, Beltran Is Hot

Anthony Di Como at Mets Blog writes about Carlos Beltran and the sudden hot streak he has been on:

The same ball, which he's hitting much farther and much more often. Beltran accounted for all of his team's offense through eight innings of Tuesday's 7-6 thriller against the Padres, knocking in two runs with a homer, two more with a double and tying the game in the eighth inning with a single.

That makes it six home runs and 18 RBIs for Beltran since returning from the disabled list just three weeks ago. He's hitting .351 in August after posting no mark higher than .238 since April, and he's launched nine home runs in his past 14 starts after needing 15 previous starts just to hit two. Last week, he earned National League Player of the Week honors after knocking in 10 runs on only nine hits.

"He's a guy that can put a team on his back and carry the team," said Marlon Anderson, another one of Tuesday's clutch performers. "It makes baseball real fun."

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!!!!

What’s Ailing Delgado?

Carlos Delgado is only batting .254 and has 18 home runs, and 68 runs batted in. Now some will say that he is having an off year, but I can’t accept this as an answer. There are multiple things that could be affecting Delgado’s bat. For instance, he could just be getting old. After all, he did turn 35 this year and the body has to start breaking down at some point. It could also be the wrist surgery that he had during the off season that has affected his swing. What about his child that was born during Spring Training. That alone has the power to distract him from his job.

For some reason I was thinking about why he wasn’t doing so well this season and then it dawned on me. Everyone is over looking one fact. What haven’t we seen in the dug out this season? How about the book? After every at bat last year, Delgado, would be seen writing down his at bat in his notebook so that he could try to avoid the same consequences that befell him in his last plate appearance.

Delgado needs to bring back his book so he can begin to tear up the National League once again. If not for his sake, then for Beltran’s sake because oddly enough, what affects Delgado ultimately affects Beltran.