Link: Q&A with Josh Thole

Will Sommer from MetsFansForever.com recently sat down with Josh Thole, one of the Mets top catching prospects.  Thole is currently playing for the Double-A Binghamton Mets.

Will Sommer
Now  last season, you were basically a full-time first baseman.  Has the transition from first base to catcher been difficult for you?

Josh Thole
No it hasn’t been that difficult at all.  It definitely takes a lot more time and a lot more work and a lot more preparation but I feel like I’m picking all that up pretty easily and I’m having no issue with that.
---
Will Sommer
Growing up did you ever envision that you would be where you are right now?

Josh Thole
I mean it’s definitely a dream when you’re a little kid but you just never know where that dream’s going to take you, so I never knew what to expect. But this is something I always wanted to do since I’ve been really little.

To read the rest of the Q&A, head over to MetsFansForever.com.

Mets release Freddy Garcia

After two miserable starts for Triple-A Buffalo, the Mets have parted ways with Freddy Garcia.  He was 0-2 with a 8.18 ERA.

Garcia signed with the Mets this off-season after auditioning for a handful of teams as he attempts to recover from surgery.  His contract was said to be worth up to $8 million if all his incentives were met.

Garcia, though, does not plan to retire, according to his agent.  But he’s mulling it.

The Mets are slim at pitching options and with the recent struggles of the starting rotation, it may be time to worry.  They have a handful of younger guys who just aren’t ready for the big show, but not much else.

It may be time to call up Pedro Martinez just to see how he’s doing.

Twitter Poll: What to do with Omir Santos?

In the first inning of last night’s game, Omir Santos hit a grand slam in his third straight start.

Brian Schneider will likely return to the Mets soon, coming off the DL after experiencing pain in his back.  But what will happen to Santos?

Last night, I asked my Twitter followers what should the Mets do with Omir Santos?

Here are their answers…

• gmo418 said: Play the hot hand. Leave in Omir.
• Section518 said: Trade one, preferably Castro. Santos to Buffalo for the short term, but bring him right back as soon as a trade is made.
• jessicarubin said: Tough. I like Castro but maybe try and shop him in exchange for a SP?
• DonCheech said: Trade Castro or DFA him. Omir needs to stay
• metschick said: "Schneider, you suck. Get outta here!"
• blackshadows14 said: Manuel plays guys who are playing well, so I believe that Santos is here to stay, as he should be.
• cvelardi said: What should the Mets do w/ Castro might be the more important question!
• cselland said: Brian Who?
• d_kris said: If we could carry 3 catchers for a bit it would be nice. But with the state of pitching I don't think that'll happen.
• samtpage said: Demote him. His success won't last, even though Schneider's not THAT much better. I bet Manuel lobbies for OS to stay.
• Jbones72 said: maybe they will get lucky Schneider won't come back!
• JTKrycek said: so far he's been better than castro or schneider; at the very least make him the new backup, or platoon him w/schneider
• fullnelson said: I think da Mets will send O. Santos down 2 Triple-A Buffalo (or DFA), unless something happens in Left Field (Sorry 4 da Pun)
• fscker said: that's a REALLY good question. I know what WILL happen, santos will get sent down.
• metgirl4ever said: ...Schneider who...?
• kerelcoop said: I'd like to see them keep Santos up and trade Schnieder. The last thing I want to see is them carry three catchers.
• darknova306 said: Mets should shop Schneider. Maybe a KazMat deal, where 'we pay you to take our garbage'. :) Santos is what this team needs.

And from the peanut gallery / jokesters…

• kevin_tor said: Tie him to Daniel Murphy for stability.
• jschil said: trade him to the yanks and convert him to a pitcher
• Retire31 said: I can't top what the other guy said about tying Omir to Murphy for stability.

Not on Twitter?  Hit the comments to toss in your 2¢ on what the Mets should do next with Omir Santos.

Follow me on Twitter to participate
in the next Twitter Poll!

Game Recap: Mets 7 – Marlins 1

Make that seven losses in a row for the Florida Marlins.

The New York Mets (9-10) beat the Florida Marlins (11-8) by a score of 7-1.

The Mini Recap

John Maine was about as good as the Mets could hope for tonight.  Though he walked three over six innings, he only allowed one hit.  The lone single came in the first inning off the bat of Jorge Cantu, and plated Emilio Bonifacio for an unearned run.  Sean Green, J.J. Putz and Francisco Rodriguez finished out the final three innings for the win.

The Mets bats got off to a hot start, as they scored six runs in the first inning.  Four of those runs came when Omir Santos hit a two-out grand slam over the left field wall, the first home run of his career.  Gary Sheffield and David Wright had earlier picked up RBI singles and a Ryan Church sac-fly in the 8th brought in the Mets final run.

An all-around good game from the Mets.  Great to see.

For the full recap, please read Maine, Santos Lead
Mets To Victory on Baseball Digest.

Odd lineup for first against Fish

John Maine will have quite an interesting lineup behind him when he takes the mound at Citi Field tonight.  No Daniel Murphy, no Ramon Castro and no Carlos Delgado.

Delgado was going to take Wednesday off, but apparently tweaked his hip, and will sit tonight.  Tatis was originally slated to play second base, but Luis Castillo will take the field as Tatis moves to first.  Sheffield, and his .136 AVG, will hit in the cleanup spot.

1. Jose Reyes – SS
2. Luis Castillo – 2B
3. Carlos Beltran – CF
4. Gary Sheffield – LF
5. David Wright – 3B
6. Ryan Church – RF
7. Fernando Tatis – 1B
8. Omir Santos – C
9. John Maine – RHP

Interesting to see Santos with another start.  Could the Mets be considering shipping Ramon Castro (and others) elsewhere to see if they can land some starting pitching?  Santos has proven, so far, that he can play up here and the Mets must like what they see.

Also, according to Steve Popper, Wright is now sporting a freshly shaved head and took a few swings of early batting practice left handed.

The 2009 Mets need a little bit of this ‘heart’

You've gotta have heart
All you really need is heart
When the odds are sayin' you'll never win
That's when the grin should start
When your luck is battin' zero
Get your chin up off the floor
Mister you can be a hero
You can open any door, there's nothin' to it but to do it
You've gotta have heart
Miles 'n miles n' miles of heart

The 1969 Mets could teach the 2009 Mets a little something about how to play baseball, don’t you think?

Via Jorge Says No!

If you’re a masochist… [Part II]

Another Daniel Murphy flop, another GIF image from Phillies fans.

From BackSheGoes.com, via The Good Phight: Again, no comment.

To check out Part I, look here.

Twitter Poll: What to do with Oliver Perez?

After another miserable start by Oliver Perez, the Mets and their fans are all wondering what the next best move is for the $36 million man.

Last night, I asked my Twitter followers: What should the Mets do with Perez?

Here are their responses…

• kerelcoop said: admit you made a mistake, eat most of the contract and trade him.
• fscker said: you can't do much with him. Huge contract you can't unload, 2009's delgado... keep playing him and hope he comes around.
• LyleLanley said: Trade, demote, or put him in middle relief
• SITTINGINTHEBAC said: send him down
• gmo418 said: Let him work it out, if mets drop him or put him in bullpen this guy is so soft mentally he will never recover
• zim1021 said: Send him to the minors and see if he could be consistent there. If not, try and trade him.
• mets_geekette said: Make him throw right-handed a few times.. maybe he made a mistake and he's really a RHP. Surely he couldn't be worse?
• Retire31 said: Put him in a Brooklyn Cyclones commercial.
• blackshadows14 said: If Redding, Garcia, or Figueroa can't fill the void, then try to trade him for another SP
• trekmetfan said: I'm affraid the end is near for Perez.
• JTKrycek said: replace him w/ANY consistent "quality start"-er & turn him into Citi Field's 36 million dollar hot dog vendor.
• jessicarubin said: send him down to regroup. If he can't, try and trade him for another SP.
• metgirl4ever said: send him 2 a shrink so he can get his mind right...Ollie & Maine r crappy right now...can u justify keeping 1 & trading other
• thebrowncoat said: Let him pitch all innings except the 5th. Also, don't give him a $36 million deal...oh crap......
• d_kris said: Give him to the Cyclones & let him work his way back up thru the ranks! Good Ollie= move up, Mr Perez's Wild Ride= stay down!
• darknova306 said: I've had enough of Ollie on this team. AAA or trade him, but I don't want to see him in Citi anymore.
• willrmc said: Ask Atlanta if they want to trade him for Lowe. Sounds fair??

And from the peanut gallery / crude humorists…

• ChuckKnoblog said: I say we stomp him! Then we tattoo him! Then we hang him...! And then we kill him!- Pee Wee's Big Adventure
• metschick said: inject him with swine flu.

I can’t see any team wanting to take Perez and his $36 million contract right now or in the very near future.  The Mets would have to eat the majority of his contract to even get the teams to the bargaining table.

The best bet is to skip his start and send him to the bullpen.  Let him take a few days off, away from the team, to clear his head and see if he can come back ready and willing to listen to Dan Warthen and the coaching staff.

Not on Twitter?  Hit the comments to toss in your 2¢ on what the Mets should do next with Oliver Perez.

Follow me on Twitter to participate
in the next Twitter Poll!

Casey Fossum DFA’d, Takahashi called up

After the finale between the New York Mets and the Washington Nationals, they designated pitcher Casey Fossum for assignment.

Fossum had just pitched 2 2-3 innings against the Nationals in relief of Oliver Perez.  Fossum walked three, struck out two and allowed one run to score.

To take his place on the roster, the Mets called up Ken Takahashi from Triple-A Buffalo. 

The Mets signed Takahashi on March 30 after he was released by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Here’s a Q&A with Patrick Newman from NPB Tracker that I did days after the Mets signed the 40 year old pitcher:

Is Takahashi a LOOGY (Lefty One Out Guy)?

No, he was a starter last year and didn’t perform that well against lefties — .333 ba against in 126 batters faced.

Average pitch speed?

Probably high 80’s on the fastball, but I haven’t seen him this year. I believe he can reach about 91 on his fastball.

Can he perform at the major league level? / Worth it or just minor league fodder?

The odds are against him, being 40 and not having an obviously dominating pitch, but he thinks his changeup is as good as [Hideki] Okajima’s. Definitely a low-risk pickup. You can’t have too many arms, and if he proves he can get lefties out in AAA the Mets may have something.

For more on Takahashi, check out a full post about him on NPB Tracker.

Game Recap: Nationals 8 – Mets 1

Another Oliver Perez start, another Oliver Perez meltdown.

The Nationals (4-13) beat the Mets (8-10) and avoided the sweep by a score of 8-1.

The Mini Recap

Perez struggled the whole game.  He  did not register a 1-2-3 inning, allowed nine hits and three walks and most importantly, seven earned runs.  Casey Fossum was asked to contribute some mop-up duty, letting in some inherited runners and one of his own in 2 2-3 innings on the mound.  Pedro Feliciano and Brian Stokes each turned in solid innings.

The Mets bats were quieted by 22 year old rookie Jordan Zimmerman.  The only run came in the first inning on a Carlos Delgado triple.  After Zimmerman’s day was done, three Nats relievers combined to no-hit the Mets.

Just a miserable game on both side of the ball as the Mets could have earned a series sweep of the lowly Nats, but instead lost in a blowout.

For the full recap, go read my article: Perez Pitiful Again.