Lineup vs. the White Sox

The Mets are in Memphis, taking on the Chicago White Sox for the Second Annual Civil Rights Game, a 5 p.m. start. This is the last exhibition game before the Mets open up in Miami on Monday afternoon.

Lineup:
SS Jose Reyes
2B Luis Castillo
3B David Wright
CF Carlos Beltran
1B Carlos Delgado
RF Ryan Church
LF Angel Pagan
C Brian Schneider
DH Brady Clark

SP John Maine

There you have it ladies and gentlemen, as this will most likely be the opening day lineup for the 2008 Mets.

I think if Clark can get a few key hits here today, he might make that jump to the 25 man roster. That might just be me hoping for Fernando Tatis to not make the team.

Raining in Memphis

The Mets will face the Chicago White Sox in the Civil Rights Game in Memphis at 5 p.m.

Unfortunately, the weather does not look like it wants to cooperate, as it is pouring in Memphis right now. John Maine is slated to take the mound for the Mets today.

Hopefully, they can get this game in, but if it's a sloppy field, I don't see how the teams would want to play in this final exhibition game before the season and risk someone getting hurt.

A song tribute to Ruben Gotay

Someone going by the name "The Gato" posted this in the comments for Gotay claimed by Braves, sung to the tune of Don McLean's hit "American Pie."

A long, long time ago…
I can still remember How Ho-Jo used to make me smile.
And I knew if he had his chance
Jose Reyes could make those people dance
And, maybe, they'd be happy for a while.
But march made me shiver With every trade Omar deliver.
Bad news on the doorstep;Gotay couldn't take one more step.
I can't remember if I cried
When I heard about the waiver wire,
But something touched me deep inside
The day the Ruben Gotay died.

Hilarious. Becoming a Brave is equal to passing on for Mets fans. The phrase "You're dead to me," comes to mind.

I have never heard of such a public outcry over losing a backup infielder. He was obviously a fan favorite and it stings that much more that he went to a hated rival in the Mets division.

Updated: Why are the Mets in the Civil Rights Game?

The Mets have the honor of playing the Chicago White Sox in the 2008 Civil Rights Game on March 29th.

My question is simple. Why the Mets?

"The intent of the game is to embrace baseball's history of African-American players, as well as to generate interest for future black players," says its Wikipedia page. On MLB.com, the game is said to represent "a symbolic eternal torch commemorating the struggle for racial harmony near where the most painful obstacle had been thrown in its path."

So, in a nutshell, it's supposed to showcase and embrace the African-American community in baseball and attempt to raise awareness supporting baseball in those communities.

So who was the genius who chose the Mets?

On the 40-man roster, the Mets only have two African-American players. On the coaching staff, they also have two men from African-American descent. Damion Easley and Marlon Anderson on the field, Willie Randolph and Jerry Manuel on the coaching staff.

In the 2006 Racial and Gender Report Card for Major League Baseball (PDF), it is noted that "A total of 40.5 percent of the players were Latino." For the Mets, it's a little more than that. On the 40-man roster, 19 players are from Latino descent.

The report also states that the drop in African-Americans in the sport since 1996 from 17 percent to 8 percent, as the percentage of Hispanic players increased during that period, from 20 percent to 29 percent.

African-American players make up 5 percent of the Mets roster. Latino players make up 47.5 percent.

If the Civil Rights Game is supposed to raise awareness for the African-American community, choosing the Mets probably wasn't the best move, as almost half of the team is Latino.

The only possible reason the Mets are in this game, that I can figure shows up later in the MLB article. It goes on to quote Omay Minaya as saying "Since the days of Jackie Robinson, baseball has been at the forefront of social change in this country, and this game is just another example that our sport understands the significance of paying the proper respect to such an important part of American history." Again, the Mets are tied to Jackie Robinson, not that it's a bad thing, but it just makes little sense to me.

So for a team that is comprised of nearly 50 percent of players from Latino descent while they are only 5 percent African-American, they were chosen to participate in a game promoting African-Americans in baseball.

That just doesn't make sense to me.

Postscript:
After seeing some of the reaction to this, I would like to talk about some things.

I'm not saying the Mets shouldn't be in this game and I'm also not saying that the civil rights movement didn't affect the Latino community. The way I read the articles about the game, it was primarily, if not exclusively, celebrating African-American and their perseverance and their effect on the game. It was also supposed to serve as a way to gain interest in baseball in the African-American community. For these reasons, I spoke primarily of that community and their role on this Mets team.

Randolph being the first African-American manager in New York is big, I understand that. He's a pretty good manager and I can live with all his different tendencies. No dissing on Randolph was meant by this post. Same goes for Manuel.

Also, I'm sure if I traced my roots back to Sicily and Italy, I'd be black too. The same could be said for more people than most people think.

Any way I look at it, I'm still glad the Mets are in this game, and it should be a nice experience for all involved.

Photo of the Day: El Duque

Orlando Hernandez seemingly locked up the fifth starter spot today with a five-inning, one run performance.

El Duque returned to his familiar high leg kick after spending most of spring working with a new delivery. As long as he can stay healthy and effective, I'll take it.
(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

SNY drinking game

Zoe, over at Pick Me Up Some Mets!, put out her SNY Drinking Game.

It's amazing.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Gary sings: 1 drink
Keith gets his ice cream: 1 drink
Gary impresses Ron and/or Keith with some esoteric baseball-historical detail: 1 drink
Keith SHOWS his footwear (or lack thereof): Drink until done
"And it's out of here!" 1 drink

If you follow this game during a broadcast, you'll probably be out cold by the third inning.
Gosh, I just love Gary / Keith / Ron. They're the best.

(This blog does not endorse drinking, but if you must, you better be of age!)

Game Recap: Orioles 4 -- Mets 3

In the battle for the fifth starter spot, it seems that El Duque has come out on top and will be in the rotation for the Mets to start the season. In a fitting finish to the game, Mike Pelfrey gave up three runs in the bottom of the ninth as the Orioles beat the Mets by a scored of 4-3.

El Duque got the start today, and with his old leg kick back, pitched five innings, only allowed one run. Hernandez ran into a bit of trouble in the third inning, but benefited from a base running blunder and got out of the inning with only the one run. He gave up four hits and one walk while striking out two.

Welcome to the fifth starter spot, Mr. Hernandez. Please don't get hurt and be, at the very least, somewhat effective. I like you, we all like you, now go out and perform like all the fans know you can.

Pelfrey took over for the rest of the game, and only allowed one hit through the first three innings while he was on the mound. In the ninth inning Pelfrey allowed three runs to score, blowing the game and taking the loss. Pelfrey walked three and struck out two today.

El Duque's performance punched his ticket to New Orleans today. I'm absolutely, 100 percent sure that he will be up with the Mets within a few months due to injuries.

The Mets will have a hot Jose Reyes coming into the season, as he went 2-3 on the day, with a double, scoring two runs. Reyes hit .328 in spring training this year.

Good stuff from Reyes as usual. He's going to be a new player this year. Much more focused and driven. I will miss the dances though.

David Wright, Endy Chavez and Marlon Anderson each added a single for the Mets to round out their hitting on the day. Both Wright and Carlos Beltran walked twice in the game.

In the battle for the final bench spot, between Fernando Tatis and Brady Clark, there was no clear winner determined today. Tatis went 0-4 with one strike out and one man left on base. Clark went 0-3 with one walk and one strike out.

It looks like Tatis has the spot locked up, but you never know with the Mets. All we know is it won't be Ruben Gotay.

Game ball: El Duque.

Gotay claimed by Braves

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news Doug...

The Atlanta Braves have claimed Ruben Gotay off of waivers.

Mets fans, prepare yourself for all the time Gotay gets a hit off of us in the coming year(s).

In other news, Steven Register was returned to the Colorado Rockies and Anderson Hernandez was optioned to AAA.

So long Cash, we barely knew ye. AHern, stay healthy, you're our backup infielder waiting in the wings, again.

9/11 game

For those who are nostalgic and also love America, the first game after 9/11 is airing on SNY right now.

I love Tsuyoshi Shinjo and all his arm bands.

Duque's mechanics

I'm so confused.

After all the talk and work to get El Duque to change his delivery and his leg kick, he has apparently abandoned it and returned to his normal high kick.

This makes no sense. So was all of his spring training a sham to try and trick other teams?

He's held the O's to one hit through two innings, if that means anything to anyone. He's faced the minimum, inducing a double play ball after allowing his first hit.