Pelfrey to try and bounce back

Mike Pelfrey takes the mound today to face the St. Louis Cardinals in Jupiter, Fla.

Pelfrey will be trying to bounce back from a 7-run, 3 1-3 inning debacle last time out on the mound. Pelfrey is trying to leap frog El Duque, who is toying with his new delivery. Duque pitched a simulated game yesterday morning and declared that his next appearance will be a start in Grapefruit League play.

Hopefully Pelfrey can bounce back today and make the decision between the two pitchers very difficult for Omar Minaya and Willie Randolph.

Three cuts

According to Jeremy Cothran, Carlos Muniz, Willie Collazo, and injured first baseman Michel Abreu were all reassigned to the minor league camp.

I leave town for one day...

And the Mets discuss trading our hottest hitter, Angel Pagan, to Boston for Coco Crisp??

Yikes. Good thing I wasn't around for that one. Glad that entire thing was debunked as a falsification.

Oliver Perez pitched 4 innings of what was apparently his best baseball of the spring, topping out in the low to mid 90's.

I really hope what we saw from Perez in the beginning was just the rust from a long winter away from baseball.

Normal blogging operations will resume as of right now.

Quick notes before I head out

I'll be out and about today, so I won't be able to post a game lineup. A recap should be in by tonight though.

-Orlando Hernandez threw a simulated game this morning while using his new windup. He tossed 3 inning (60 pitches, 38 strikes) to a minor-league group. Without fielders to shag balls, El Duque seemed to give up 8 hits and 2 runs, one of which came on a home run to Rene Reyes. Bart Hubbuch reports that El Duque's next session will be a start in Grapefruit League play.

I need to see what Duque can do in a game to try and gauge where the 5th starters spot stands. This might be a tough one for Willie Randolph & Co.

-Luis Castillo could get into the lineup today at Tradition Field. The ailing second baseman could return soon, and possibly as early as todays game against the Orioles, reports Peter Botte.

If the Mets can field the starting team just once before spring is over, I'll be a happy man.

-Oliver Perez takes the mound to face the Baltimore Orioles at Tradition Field, a 1:10 p.m. start. The game is available on SNY.

Photo of the Day: Pagan

Angel Pagan gets a face full of dirt while sliding into third base with a 2-run triple.
Does he make the team? Does he get the starting nod? Stay tuned to find out...
(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Your Yankees news of the day: Joba, Ian and Phil get a nickname

The three top pitchers from the Yankees organization have officially cursed themselves.

According to Phil Hughes, on his person website, they have settled on the nickname "The Three Amigos."

That's where it begins guys, then "Generation K" happens, and we all know how that story ends. Good luck in your now cursed season!

Game Recap: Red Sox 4 -- Mets 3

The Mets sent the B-squad to take on the Boston Red Sox, and lost by a score of 4-3.

Nelson Figueroa made the start, going 3 innings, allowing 4 earned runs on 5 hits, 2 walks, and 1 strikeout. Figueroa allowed one home run, a solo shot to lead off the second inning by Mike Lowell. Figueroa's spring scoreless streak came to an end with that homer.

Steven Register got back on track today, pitching 2 innings of 2 hit ball without allowing a run to score. Register didn't walk or strikeout anyone, but after his last game, pitching a pair of scoreless innings is wonderful.

Ruddy Lugo, Joselo Diaz and Nate Field finished out the game, each pitching a scoreless and hitless inning. Lugo and Field each struck out one while Diaz K'd two.

Besides Figueroa's runs, the bullpen looked pretty good today. If we can get this kind of results from our major league club, all our prayers would be answered.

Angel Pagan hit a 2-run triple, going 1-3 on the day. Ryan Church went 0-2 with a walk and a strikeout. Jose Valentin, who served as the DH, went 0-2 with 2 walks.

Not much to take away from this game. Pagan seems to be solidifying his role on the team and Register regained his composure with 2 innings of scoreless baseball.

Note: Pedro Martinez pitched a simulated game today, throwing 53 pitches in 4 innings. He allowed 4 hits, all singles, to Carlos Beltran and a group of minor leaguers. Beltran went 1-5.

Results from Pedro's sim-game

Pedro Martinez made his second "appearance" of the spring, pitching in another simulated game back in Port St. Lucie.

Pedro tossed 59-pitches, allowing four hits, all singles. He struck out two and walked none.

From Bart Hubbuch:

Facing Carlos Beltran Carlos Beltran and three rookie-level minor leaguers on the main diamond at Tradition Field, Pedro threw 43 strikes while striking out two and walking none. He allowed four hits, all of them singles.

Martinez topped out at 87 mph on the radar gun but said he was happy with his velocity and command. His change-up was in the 68-72 mph range.

Jeremy Cothran quotes Rick Peterson on Pedro's simulated game:

"It was like a test drive," pitching coach Rick Peterson said. "He was going to go out there and do all the things he wanted to do."

Pedro should pitch Sunday against the Tigers in Port St. Lucie. As any fan would be, I'm pretty excited to get Pedro back in gear. The 1-2 punch is almost complete and back to normal.

Lennon: Add Pagan to the roster

There is a growing number of us (and if you're not one of us, I don't understand how) who would like to officially announce the addition of Angel Pagan to the New York Mets roster soon, preferably yesterday.

David Lennon has joined our ranks:

It's time to just put Angel Pagan on the Opening Day roster. Done deal. Pagan is playing out of his mind this spring and is doing it again today against the Red Sox. Guy never makes an out. In the first inning, Pagan hit a laser off Tim Wakefield that Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis barely managed to snare with a great lunging catch toward the line. Normally, that's a double.

In the third inning, this time with two runners on, Pagan launched a triple into the left-centerfield gap to give the Mets a 2-1 lead. And to top it off, Nelson Figueroa owes him dinner for the saving grab he made to end the third. With the bases loaded, and two outs, Pagan made a charging, diving catch to rob Jed Lowrie. He's doing it all.

And if he can keep doing it all, I'll be even more excited. Keep it up, Mr. Pagan, we're all pulling for you.

Reyes the latest to get punk'd

It seems that pranks are in full swing this spring training.

After punkings (read: pranking) by the Phillies and the Yankees, Jose Reyes is the latest to fall victim to the rash of high jinks.

According to Jeremy Cothran and Peter Botte, Reyes' locker was completely empty when he strolled in to camp this morning. No clothes, no equipment, not even a nameplate.

From Botte:

The Mets shortstop showed up in the locker room around 9 this morning to an empty stall - no gear, no bling, no personal items, no nameplate even - he was apparently the target of a prank by one of his teammates who had to arrive considerably earlier to catch a 7 a.m. bus to face the BoSox again across Alligator Alley in Fort Myers.

Reyes was none-too-pleased, although equipment manager Charlie Samuels found all of the gear and clothes in an empty stall a few cubicles down the row, between those belonging to Endy and Alou.

Of all people, I think Reyes' is the last guy I would choose to mess with his clothes. I'm surprised there wasn't a security system on his fancy duds.