Matt Battaglino at The New York Post writes about the Mets catching situation and who he believes they should turn to:With Brian Schneider and Ramon Castro suffering hamstring problems, perhaps the Mets should again turn to a man they’ve turned to many times before, who, for the most part, didn’t let them down.
Maybe the Mets should turn to Mike Piazza.
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.
Marty Noble at Mets.com writes about Ramon Castro, Brian Schnider and what they bring to the table as the Mets catchers:
The two make for an intriguing tandem, perhaps the most balanced catching tandem the Mets have had since John Stearns and Ron Hodges shared the assignment in the late 1970s and into the '80s.
Neither Castro nor Schneider is the offensive player Piazza was -- how many players are, regardless of position? -- but Castro is a productive hitter with genuine power. And Schneider may be the best defensive catcher the Mets have had since Jerry Grote ended his successful tour with the organization in 1977.
Once, Schneider produced remarkable numbers throwing out would-be base stealers -- 63 caught stealing against 60 steals in 2003 and '04 combined. He threw out 24 of 77 would-be base stealers (31 percent) last season. Even with the recent drop in percentage, Schneider has thrown out 40 percent of would-be base thieves, making him the Mets' best throwing catcher since the early years of Todd Hundley's career.
Over at the Gotham Baseball Forum, screen name Not4Nuttin writes the following about the Mets bench:
The Mets will likely carry 5 or 6 players on the bench this year, and 11 or 12 pitchers. Last year, I believe (but someone correct me if I'm wrong), they carried 12 relievers for most of the year and only 5 bench players. As it stands now, assuming Castro is not a starter, we have 3 bench players that are locked in for next season, and a 4th(Endy) who is a virtual lock:
C Ramon Castro $2,300,000
INF/Util Damon Easley $950,000
INF/Util Marlon Anderson $1,050,000
OF Endy Chavez $2,750,000 (salary is an estimate)
That leaves one spot open assuming they carry 12 pitchers. And, I'd assume it will be Ruben Gotay (at about $480,000, again an estimate), as we need someone who can fill in at SS and 3B. It strikes me as a bit weird that we'll be carrying 3 natural 2B on the bench in Anderson, Easley and Gotay, but that seems the route we are going to go. Of course, Easley and Anderson can also play the corner OF spots (with Anderson even playing a little CF the past few years), and each can also play 1B, and possible 3B and Easley can even apparently play some SS as well (having played a decent number of games at SS each of the past several years, except last year).
But doesn't it seem a bit odd going with a bench like this? I like the bench, but it feels like we are missing a key piece. Is it foolish to think that Gotay will be the last piece, or will the Mets exile him back to AAA and have some other veteran bat for the bench? I hope not. Its just that looking at this bench, it seems like something is missing.
At Rotoworld they write about Ramon Castro and the Mets signing a new deal for two years:
According to the New York Daily News, Ramon Castro and the Mets have "wrapped up a two-year deal."
The contract is said to be worth just over $4 million and will become official once Castro takes a physical. He's expected to continue as a backup, with the team reportedly hoping to pair him with Yorvit Torrealba, who could also be on the verge of signing with the Mets.
At Rotoworld they write about the Mets and Ramon Castro working on a two year deal:
According to the New York Daily News, the Mets and Ramon Castro are working on a two-year contract.
With Jorge Posada now out of the picture after re-signing with the Yankees, the Mets may try to bring back last season's combo of Castro and Paul Lo Duca. They're also said to be interested in Yorvit Torrealba, whose agent confirmed Monday that the Mets have contacted him.
Joel Sherman at The New York Post writes about the Rockies and their interest in Paul Lo Duca and Ramon Castro:
The Rockies anticipate they may lose catcher Yorvit Torrealba and their top target to replace him is Met free agent Ramon Castro. Colorado imagines Castro's power being even more overt playing home games in Coors Field rather than Shea Stadium. The Rockies also have strong interest in free agents Paul Lo Duca and Jose Molina as replacements for Torrealba.
Dave Ponte at Mets Merized writes about the Mets catcher situation and who he feels should be the starter next season:
A few days ago, the MMO Staff examined the catcher position. The average grade was a B-. Not great but not horrible, like my GPA in high school. I would assume that Paul Lo Duca was responsible for impacting the decision on that grade. For the last two years, he has represented the heart and soul of the Mets and I will always respect him for that. He puts it all on the line every single time he steps out onto that field. Playing through pain and grinding it out with the best of them. Then there is Ramon Castro. When given the opportunity, he flourished while commanding the respect of his teammates and opposing teams.
It is tough to write this type of blog due to the fact that I like Paul Lo Duca so much and I am not trying to say that the Mets should even get rid of him. He is an Italian from New York who gets carried away too easily, lets his emotions get the best of him, curses profusely and gets in trouble with the ladies. I mean what is there not to like? But he’s not my best friend, he’s my catcher, and I want someone who is consistently produces at the highest level and based on calculated speculation, it’s Castro.
Al Iannazzone at North Jersey writes about Ramon Castro and how his back is doing:
Randolph said there is "no guarantee" that Ramon Castro, who is on a rehab stint while recovering from an arthritic lower back, will be on the playoff roster. Randolph is getting "mixed reports" about Castro's progress.
"The way he's going he may not get back in time to get enough at-bats," Randolph said.
With the magic number dwindling by the game, the Mets playoff chances get better and better. They’re a mere fifteen games away from clinching the National League East title for a second straight year and unlike last year will finally might have the entire pitching staff at full strength.
So the only thing for us to do is to take a look at some possible questions that the Mets are going to be faced with as the playoffs loom.
Is Mota playing come October?
The first problem is an enormous one and it all falls on Willie Randolph’s shoulders. Is Guillermo Mota going to be allowed to be on the post season roster? There are an astronomical number of reasons why he shouldn’t and the number on reason is his 5.82 ERA. This should be reason enough for Mota to be sent home packing come October, but we all know how Willie thinks that he will turn his game around come playoff time. The only problem with this train of thought would be, and we all know it’s going to happen, that Mota is going to be brought into a big situation and give up the game.
Pedro, the Number One Starter?
With his first two starts since coming off of rotator cuff surgery, Pedro Martinez is 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA. Should this warrant him as the top dog in the Mets playoff rotation? I firmly believe so. With Pedro atop of the Mets rotation, they look more intimidating than the Peavey, Young combination in the National League.
Is Ramon Castro going to be ready for October ball?
Castro has just started his rehab assignment for Brooklyn and still isn’t ready to come back to the big club yet. Knowing that Paul Lo Duca is going to make most, if not all, of the playoff starts, could Willie bring Castro up before the post season begins? Well he should because I don’t think I could see Lo Duca going down and the remainder of the games played out by Di Felice, can you?
Who’s on first?
Carlos Delgado is apparently out for the rest of the season and that brings a plethora of questions to light. Could Shawn Green cover first in the post season? If not how about Conine? These questions are ones that I don’t want to ask, so Delgado had better suck up the pain come October and make a repeat of his effort last year, when he destroyed LA and the Cardinals hitting .354 with 4 home runs. That kind of production would be sorely missed if he can’t make it back.
Who’s the fourth starter?
Maine and Perez both came up big for the Mets last October, but that was when Pedro and El Duque were side lined, so they won’t be asked to make the same kind of repeat this year. Paul LoDuca already said that he believes that Oliver Perez wouldn’t be a good option out of the pen because of his erratic style. Good enough for me, so my fifth starter would have to be Oliver Perez or even a two headed beast of Perez and Maine. How about a little three or four inning show from each in the same game?
At Rotoworld they write about Ramon Castro and when he might be back:
Ramon Castro went 2-for-3 with a walk while catching for SS Single-A Brooklyn on Sunday.
The Mets are trying to evaluate whether Castro's back will allow him to contribute. "He's starting to move around a little bit and hopefully he can get some at-bats so we can see where he is moving forward," manager Willie Randolph said.
John Delcos at Lo Hud writes about Ramon Castro:
We haven’t heard Ramon Castro’s name recently, which probably isn’t encouraging when it comes to any playoff roster. With Castro down, is looks as if it will be Mike DiFelice and Sandy Alomar for the back-up catching spot to Paul Lo Duca.
DiFelice has done well so there’s real no reason to make a change.
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?
At Rotoworld they give an update on Ramon Castro:
Ramon Castro, who has been out since Aug. 13 with a lower back pain, is eligible come off the disabled list Tuesday, but won't return until Saturday.
The Mets will wait to activate Castro until rosters are eligible to expand to 40 on Sept. 1. He will resume serving as Paul Lo Duca's backup.
from MetsLifer.com
At Metsblog.com this afternoon a post was uploaded discussing the idea of the Mets getting Mike Piazza to help with their catching woes. I really enjoy Metsblog.com, but here at MetsLifer.com we discussed this idea a few weeks ago in a previous post.
I was surprised to see Metsblog.com respond that the Mets shouldn't go after Piazza (blasphemy!). One of the reasons was that Castro does not appear to be out of the lineup for very long (good news), but the more surprising reason was that this is no longer Mike Piazza's team. It's Reyes' team or Wright's team.
In my opinion that's exactly the reason you add Piazza.
Piazza doesn't have to be the superstar or leader of this team. He's a contributor, one of those intangibles off the bench, a la Kirk Gibson on the '88 Dodgers. This is Reyes' & Wright's team, but that doesn't mean Piazza shouldn't be on it.
Mike DeFelice is quite possibly the worst hitter in baseball, and any at bat he has is one too many if you ask me. Piazza calls a great game, and it's not like Lo Duca or Castro are gunning runners down left and right. But it's the intangibles that make me want Piazza now more than ever. It would be like the return of a hero to the ball club. Piazza is one of the greatest clutch home run hitters I have seen, and if the Mets make the playoff you know there is a historic moment waiting to happen if Piazza is in pinstripes.
There are a number of other reasons which I discussed in my previous post that I think are still valid.
For the fans as well as for the ball club, getting Piazza is a win-win situation. Send DeFelice back to the minors to tutor Mike Pelfrey, and bring in Mike Piazza which adds a nice bat to the Mets bench and a solid backup catcher.
Bring Mike Piazza home where he belongs.
Anthony Di Como at Mets.com writes about Ramon Castro and him leaving the game yesterday:
Not 24 hours after starting catcher Paul Lo Duca went on the disabled list with a strained right hamstring, backup Ramon Castro left Sunday's game with mild arthritis of his lower back. He's listed as day-to-day and should be back in uniform -- though perhaps only in limited capacity -- when the Mets begin their road trip on Tuesday in Pittsburgh.
Ramon Castro is having a monstrous year at the plate this season. Hitting at .290 and has 9 home runs and 27 runs batted in, in only 124 at bats. I guess it should come as no surprise that because he is going to be a free agent at the end of the season, teams are starting to take notice in him.
Over at MLB-Trade Rumors, they write a little piece about how Castro might be the strongest option behind the plate this off season.I didn't view him as a potential starter. But with nine homers in 124 ABs for the Mets this year, Castro could move to the front of a weak class of catchers. Assuming Jorge Posada and Ivan Rodriguez never hit the open market that leaves Castro, Michael Barrett, Paul Lo Duca, and Jason Kendall.
If this is indeed true, then Omar needs to retain Castro to at least platoon next season with whatever option they decide to go in (Lo Duca or not). Castro is an integral part of the team and just because the Marlins couldn’t see how much of a commodity having Ramon Castro around the club house and on the field is, doesn’t mean that Met fans don’t see it.
So I am begging you Omar, resign Castro before it becomes too late.
George Willis at The New York Post writes about Ramon Castro, the best back up catcher in baseball:
It was the elder Castro who taught his son the game of baseball, a sport Castro Sr. played well enough to be a fixture in the Puerto Rican leagues. It was dad who taught his son how to respect the game, his teammates and to always be prepared physically and mentally when his opportunity came. Castro Jr. has learned those lessons well, making him more valuable to the Mets than anyone can truly realize.
He proved his value again yesterday. With Paul Lo Duca nursing a strained right hamstring, Castro drew the start yesterday afternoon against the Washington Nationals. In a game shortened by rain, he produced a double and a two-run homer in his two at-bats during the Mets’ 5-0 victory.
“He’s one of the better backup catchers in the game,” Mets manager Willie Randolph said. “He’s always ready to play for us. He has been a big part of our success the last couple of years.”
Kevin Devaney at Lo Hud, writes about the greeting Jason Vargas got upon arriving at Shea:
Jason Vargas got quite a welcome when he arrived before today’s game.
First, Ramon Castro and Ruben Gotay cornered him in the locker room and shaved his head. Vargas, by the way, had some nice flowing locks. It wasn’t David Newhan-esque, but it was close. Vargas’s family back at home, tuning in to see his Mets debut, might not recognize him. He didn’t seem thrilled about it, either.
Mark Herrmann at Newsday, writes about the Mets and their depth on the bench and in the minors:
Sunday typically is a day of rest for big-league clubs, a time when veterans get time off. Mike Piazza used to get held out so often that Bobby Valentine, then the Mets' manager, joked that complaints were pouring in from fans who bought the Sunday ticket package
The Mets have more depth than the Brewers, who lost two of three this weekend. The latter used two lefthanded batters, Tony Gwynn Jr. and Craig Counsell, as pinch hitters against Perez, a lefthander, and came up empty. The Mets, on the other hand, reached into the minors for Gomez and came up aces.
Credit the Mets' culture for developing an extra like him -- Gomez's batting average has steadily improved through his five years in pro ball -- and for making him feel so comfortable as an emergency call-up (Alou's quadriceps is barking and top prospect Lastings Milledge is hurting).
Good teams run deep. Depth keeps them fresh and helps them take chances. For instance, the Mets were (mistakenly, it turns out) so confident in Milledge last year that they traded rightfielder Xavier Nady for reliever Roberto Hernandez. They got Perez as a throw-in. If Perez keeps pitching like this, that 2006 deal will be the best move of 2007.
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