Murphy makes top 10 list

Buster Olney broke down the top 10 players to watch in MLB this year, and the Mets own Daniel Murphy ranked in at No. 3.

3. Daniel Murphy, Mets: Everybody who sees his at-bats walks away thinking they've just seen one of the most savvy young hitters in the sport.

Pretty high praise for Murphy.

The more I read about the young guy, the more I'm excited to see him on the team for a full year. He's like the second coming of David Wright, just with less pop. And who would deny another David Wright?

Is it time to worry about John Maine?

John Maine, coming back from shoulder surgery that cost him part of the 2008 season, is currently sporting a 10.38 ERA in 13 innings of work.

Some days he's confident about the pitches he was throwing, other days he complains that his pitches were missing and he doesn't know what's wrong. It must be disheartening for a pitcher to go out there and hit all your spots one day and miss them all the next.

Mets officials are also starting to take note.

According to Steve Popper, Omar Minaya and Jerry Manuel met for 10 minutes after Maine's five run drubbing on Saturday.

Popper quoted Manuel as saying: "I though the ball was coming out of his hand better than at any time this spring," he said. "His command just needs to be a little better."

Maine, on the other hand, had this to say: "I"m trying to keep things in perspective," he said. "I'm working on things right now. Even though the numbers weren't there, it seems two or three pitches could've made a difference. Ball are dropping in."

You can count me in the growing group of fans that are worried about John Maine. He's the No. 4 starter, but he just can't seem to find his groove after the surgery. Maine has a very bright future in front of him if he can stay healthy and re-find his pitches.

Update - 10:21 p.m.: Here's an update from camp, via David Lennon:

Maine threw roughly 50 pitches in the bullpen under Warthen's supervision and both were pleased with the session. He added about another eight inches to his stride, changed the grip on his slider and overall simplified his delivery. Warthen believes that Maine had been "babying" his arm and shoulder since the surgery. Now, with the longer stride, he should have more velocity on his pitches and better command.

"That's still a golden arm," Warthen said.

Lineup coming into view

It's been confirmed that the Jose Reyes experiment is over, and when the regular season begins, he will be batting lead off for the New York Mets. That leads to the next question, who's going to be batting behind Reyes?

Adam Rubin is reporting that the young Daniel Murphy will be the patient hitter the Mets tab to hit behind Reyes.

In 131 at bats last season, Murphy posted a .313 batting average and a .397 on base percentage, highest among first year players.

This bumps last year's No. 2 hitter, Luis Castillo, down to 8th in the order. This weakens the bottom of the order, but obviously strengthens the top of it.

Here's how a lineup might look with Murphy in left field:

1. Jose Reyes -- S
   
2. Daniel Murphy -- L
   
3. Carlos Beltran -- S
   
4. Carlos Delgado -- L
   
5. David Wright -- R
   
6. Ryan Church -- L
   
7. Brian Schneider -- L
   
8. Luis Castillo -- S
   
9. Pitcher

I think this might be the best lineup the Mets can put out. I like the way it's structured with a switch hitting in the first, third and eighth spot. It is a little left-heavy, but if the switch hitters flip to the right side of the plate, they should be all right.

Tom Martin released

The Mets have released Tom Martin, along with his broken wrist and mounted hog head.

Martin, a left handed reliever likely bound for Buffalo, fell down a flight of stairs at his rented home in Florida, breaking his wrist 10 days ago.

For lack of a better phrase, this is a "tough break" for Martin.

Alexi Panos taking over for Julie Alexandria; Mets Weekly debuts today

We're just about five minutes into the debut of Mets Weekly with new host Julie Alexandria of Beer Money fame. Good luck to Julie in her new endeavor. As a Mets fan, I'm sure she'll do very well on the show.

So...who's going to be taking over for Julie? Neil Best rumors that it will be Alexi Panos. Panos looks so much like Alexandria, she might just be her sister. I guess someone at SNY has a "type."

Livan Hernandez and Steve Somers: A match made in heaven

Thanks to Jeremy for this link.

If you are in need of a chuckle, go listen to Steve Somers chat with likely fifth starter Livan Hernandez.

Listen for the insertion of random syllables and grumbles on Livan's part. It made me laugh.

Game Recap: Mets 4 -- Orioles 0

Five pitchers combined to shut out the Baltimore Orioles on their spring training turf today, as the Mets cruised to a 4-0 victory.

On The Mound

Oliver Perez made his first start of the spring, pitching only three innings. He allowed only one hit, a double, and walked two batters.

A good, quick showing for Perez, who will be dialed back after throwing 85 pitches in his last World Baseball Classic appearance.

Bobby Parnell followed Perez, going 2 2-3 innings and scattering five hits. Parnell struck out two. Darren O'Day was next in line and allowed one walk and one strikeout in 1 1-3 innings.

Parnell is still around while Jon Niese heads to the minor league because Parnell still has a chance to stick in the bullpen. It's an outside shot, but a shot just the same.

Brian Stokes and Elmer Dessens each allowed one hit in their inning of work.

At The Plate

Daniel Murphy continued his hot spring, going 2-4, with a triple. He drove in two RBIs and scored one run.

I can't wait to see him get a full season under his belt.

Ike Davis also picked up two hits, including a double, in his first spring training action. He drove in one run.

Nice to see from the young guy.

Alex Cora picked up the Mets other RBI.

On Deck

The Mets will travel to Orlando to take on the Atlanta Braves in a 1 p.m. game on Saturday. The game is not on TV.

The State of the Mets -- 3/20/09

Here is the 10th edition of The State of the Mets.

Covering: Livan Hernandez, Nick Evans and someone that might fit into the bullpen for the Mets.

Enjoy.

Jon Niese reassigned to minor league camp; Livan all but locks up fifth starter

Announcing the New York Mets fifth starter: Livan Hernandez!

That's the message the Mets are sending today, as young gun Jon Niese has been sent to minor league camp.

Hernandez all but tied up the spot on the team on Wednesday with five smooth innings, allowing only one run. Niese was Hernandez's closest compeition, especially since Freddy Garcia is a shell of his former self.

Interesting move. I figured this would play out a little longer than it did.

Interesting things going on today

A few things to pay attention to as you watch today's spring training game read about it later.

Oliver Perez
Perez is making his first Grapefruit League appearance today again the Orioles after returning from the World Baseball Classic. Perez struggled through the WBC, going 0-1 with a 9.45 ERA in 6.2 innings. Perez also expressed that he was feeling "fatigued" after the performance.

Jerry Manuel said he would "dial-back" Perez during spring training action. Expect only a few innings out of Perez today.

Nick Evans
Evans will start in right field today as the Mets try and find a position for the young righty. He leads the team in spring training at bats, likely due to the WBC. Evans is a young guy that should be getting regular playing time, so a bench position may not be what the Mets want for him. Wrestiling away a starting job may be his only chance at making the Opening Day roster, but I don't see that happening.

Ike Davis
The Mets picked Davis 18th overall in the 2008 draft, and he will be starting at first base today.

Adam Rubin posted the write up he completed on Davis on draft day:

Davis, unlike his father a lefty thrower and hitter, pitched his freshman year, then played right field his sophomore year and first base as a junior. He is hitting .394 with 16 homers and 73 RBI in 49 games for ASU, entering a matchup with Fresno State this weekend for a berth in the College World Series.

"I've played first longer, so I'm probably a lot better at that," he said.

Too bad this game isn't on TV.