|
|
|
Last night, Jerry Manuel said he doesn’t believe Damion Easley is healthy enough to help the team at second base.
Instead, Easley is still only able to be used as a ‘spot pinch hitter.’
Meanwhile, Luis Castillo is batting .200 in 15 games since returning from the disabled list, and Argenis Reyes has just one hit in his last 26 bats.
Regarding second base in general, Manuel said, “Yeah, we’ve got some issues, we’ve got some things we’ve got to deal with.”
Like I wrote last night, and like Manuel even said himself last week, Reyes, despite his issues at the plate, has an energy about him that is good for this team. Plus, he is a more lively, more reliable defensive second baseman.
Look, for whatever reason, whether coincidence or not, the Mets play better when Reyes is in the lineup – or so it seems.
This should not be ignored, especially with just six games left.
 |
 |
 |
RSS 2.0 Both comments and pings are currently closed.
Another GIDP and strikeouts, LOOKING.
And some on here want to plug him BACK into the 2-hole (rolls eyes)…
it’s funny to me how the injuries to church and seemed to not hurt them at all…but tatis and easley get hurt and they go into a tailspin…unreal
church and alou
The Maine injury and the Wagner injury were the ones that started the tailspin. That’s their #3 starter and closer.
actually they won something like 22 out of 28 after wagner went down originally…then after it was official that he was lost for the season which was right ab the time that castillo came back was when they went into a tailspin
Even if Castillo is the best option, can we bat him 8th or 9th instead of 2nd or 7th? I mean, 7th? Really?
Was anyone shocked to see Schneider kill a rally last night with that DP? He was 1-18 against Marquis before that AB and Castro sat and watched (5-11 2 HR off Marquis).
I don’t care who of Argenis or Castillo play tonight, but I want to see them bat 9th, and Santana 8th.
If Reyes brings energy to the team then I’m sold. Castillo brings deep depression to my soul anytime I lay eyes on him…don’t know why.
i have to agree….
i went to the game (had to leave after 6, it was painful), but when he killed rally’s I was hoping to see some emotion, throw a helmet, show you give a dam…but no….nothing
With a lefty pitcher starting tonight, I’d be tempted to give Ramon Martinez a start. He can’t be worse than Castillo.
hmmmm
that is an interesting thought
Great call — Reyes can;t hit but his fresh face was part of what ignited a 10 game winning streak (he won his first 10 games in the majors!)
That, or throw Murph out there and see what happens. Evans in LF batting 7th. Then Argenis comes in for defense after PHing for the pitcher, or after Evans 3rd AB, Murph back to LF.
I agree with this idea.
The legend of Daniel Murphy plays defensively at 2b about as well as Luis Castillo hits. Don’t quote me on this but DMurph made several errors in his limited stint at 2b in Bingo.
5 in 19 games I believe with 3 in one game. All 5 early.
MINOR LEAGUE STATS
5 Es in 17 games with a 949 fielding % at 2b
Meanwhile, his naural position is 3b, where he made 13 Es in 64 games, a 927 fielding %
Geeze Matt, were the 1,266 post yesterday on this topic not enough for you? Or are you just trying to give us another post that will generate 300 comments all saying the exact same thing as yesterday argued by the exact same people.
he is a business man!
Or, he doesn’t read every single comment, and was unaware that so many people were already talking about Reyes.
Just a thought, but what do I know.
Read every single comment Matt? Come on. You know as well as I do that this has been posted by you many times and has been debated on here over and over. We have much more to worry about like what to do when Pedro has to make another start or when we have the lead after 7 tonight and Johan comes out.
Johan better go more than 7 tonight. If I were Jerry, I’d get in his face and tell him that he must find a way to go 8 or 9.
the mets gotta man up from here on in.
Well, most of your post was playing off the comment that Manuel doesn’t expect Easley back, which is news and worth posting.
I guess therealsince86 wasn’t around during the Santana rumors…
Been here the entire time since the begining of the site. I guess we are all just jumpy at this point. And after having post after post last night from people running straight into a tree and wondering where the forrest is……
Castillo sucks but our #7 hitter is no where near the only problem we have. We have things like the fact that Niese may have to start again and we may have to see Pedro twice. The pen can’t hold any lead and we never know what offense is going to show up. Yet our only concern seems to be Castillo?
Niese won’t get another start, and Pedro will only get one more. Santana and Ollie will go on short rest and pitch the last 2 games of the season. At least that’s what Ed Coleman said yesterday on WFAN.
Wasn’t Manuel quoted as saying that he would not. He would consider using them in the pen but not on short rest?
I think I remember him saying that, but that was when we had a comfortable lead over the Brewers. Ed Coleman said that if things got dicey (which they are now), that Santana and Ollie would probably go on short rest to finish the last 2 games. I would agree with that decision. It gets Ollie and extra start instead of Niese. And I like Ollie in a must win game 162. The only problem is (if there is a tie), Pedro would be in line to pitch the one game playoff on Monday. Unless Jerry throws Pelfrey on short rest.
If they use Santana and Perez on short rest then the one game playoff would be Pedro on 3 days rest or Pelfrey on 2 days rest.
Especially considering this is your 2nd post about this since last nights game.
And that was your 3rd post in an hour about what is being posted. :)
LOL. Point taken.
Thereal … I’m happy to see that you’ve at least come around and admitted that Castillo stinks. You still defend him but you’ve come a long way on your stance.
He has not performed this season. Anyone can see that. Now is he a better option than Awful Reyes? Clearly. Does it really matter in the scheme of things? Not a bit.
It’s not an argument about A. Reyes at all though. That is your last defense but the only reason you can go there is because Easley got hurt.
Like I said … a few months ago you were adamant that Castillo was a career .300 hitter and people were stupid to say that he couldn’t do that anymore.
Now he’s proven what many others have been seeing … a decline. I’m just glad to see you finally say the words “Castillo stinks”.
:)
He’s injured this year, hopefully for his sake he can regain the form he had just last season. Unfortunately he has already worn out his chance with the Mets.
He was injured last year too, it’s only going to go down hill from here. That is the reality of the situation.
I hope to God he does go somewhere else next year. We’d only be too lucky.
…and I know you’ll say, yeah he was injured last year and performed well. What I’m saying is his knees will continue to hamper him. He will continue to decline.
You know, I really have to wonder if maybe he is a guy that can’t play with fan pressure. He has never had it before in Minnesota and Florida.
Why has no one mentioned that last year Castillo was acquired and then the mets collapsed? Were there not rumors about him being a bad influence on J Reyes? The Castillo signing was so wrong on many levels. He should not be the starting second baseman next year. Period.
castillo goes on the dl, mets get hot…castillo comes off the dl, easley gets hurt, mets start playing terrible…hmmmm…i just dont wanna see this guy again…id rather play murphy at second and evans in left…i dont care at this point or start playing endy a little more or something
Moving Murphy to second now would be the equilvalent to giving Humber his first and only start when they did last year, stupid.
If he makes one error the fickle fans will be demanding to trade him for a bag of balls.
So who cares what the fans think? The fans think Castillo and Reyes both stink. So why not give Murphy a try. If he fails do you really think they will blame him?
put murphy at second base and play evans and chavez in LF, I mean we have to do anything to get this team going, castillo is terrible and worthless.
I don’t normally subscribe to circumstance, but Castillo is just not going to do anything worth seeing at this point, the worst Reyes could do is have the same miserable at-bats and make an error, which Castillo and his bad knee are destined for anyway.
I’d play just about anyone on the roster at second at this point over Castillo, he just is not effective and needs to stay away from the field.
Where is Anderson Hernandez when you need him?
jerry should know that arey should be in there instead of slappy. jerry is stubborn like yankee willie
Man … it sure does not look like the cubs have any plans on taking it easy down the strech …. the Mets the BRew Crew to not play good this week or else …. see you next spring.
Maybe we can sign Jason Marquis to bat cleanup next year?
lmaooo
I heard Keith the other night defending Castillo and calling him a “quality player”. Now Keith always speaks his mind and tells it like it is, so that comment was just really bizarre.
I posted this last week but it’s worth mentioning again
Record when Castillo starts: 36-41
Anyone else: 50-29
I don’t care who they start at 2b, as long as it’s not him.
yeah, but OBP is more important than record.
Last time I checked, you need wins to get into the playoffs. Castillo’s OBP hasn’t done much to help them win. I’m not saying A Reyes is going to be a great player but let’s see what happens. Most people were knocking A Hernandez saying he’ll never hit. I’ll take his .303 avg right now.
There are only 6 games left. It’s desperation mode, do whatever it takes to win.
hey, i was joking… i’m on your side … of course wins are more important … but for some reason people love castillo’s OBP
Ok, sorry. Didn’t have my sarcasm detector on. HIs OBP isn’t even that good. He got on base twice and they still lost.
look..numbers say castillo is better than reyes at the plate. I will not lie and say i did not cringe when he struck out on 3 pitches(i missed the majority of the game because of school). We do not have a serious bat at second unless you sacrifice defense for it. At this point i give up and just go with what makes the lineup better “personality” wise..which from what i understand would favor reyes. Just bat him 8th please. Murph should stay in LF for the rest of the season and evans should be used to spell church if theres a L pitching if church continues to stay cold.
Actually if you are going to start Reyes, which I am fine with at this point as it won’t matter either way, bat him 9th. He has a lower OBP than most pitchers anyway.
lol i was going to say that but i figured id be killed here. When pelf and santana pitch bat reyes 9th as they put a better swing together than reyes or castillo. At this point they are one and the same to me
Oliver Perez
BA .153
OBP .183
Reyes
BA .217
OBP .253
Maine
OBP
.212
Reyes
OBP .253
Pedro
SLG .189
Reyes
SLG .245
Johan
BA .175
OBP .206
SLG .252. Yes it really is Higher than Reyes.
LMAOOOOOO
Clean Version: Sonny talking about Castillo.
Hey! I don’t want your
money touching my money!
:35:26
-What?
-I don’t want your money -
:35:29
My money’s no good? Why?
:35:30
Why? Cos you’re a jinx.
Put him in the bathroom.
:35:34
Get outta here!
:35:38
-Get outta here!
- loser!
:35:41
Leave him there.
:35:46
He’s a jinx!
jeez, what did we met fans do to deserve this craptastic september and last year’s collapse.
was at the game last night and the crowd was getting feisty ( at least in sec 3 of upper reserve)…but it was met fans vs met fans
This is getting ugly and i just pray that the mets find a way to sneak into the playoffs otherwise that was my last memory at shea.
just pathetic
castillo likes to get wasted and go to down and our rap clubs way more than he likes to play baseball
agreed…he is enjoying the benefits of the omar minaya retirement plan
for more testimonials speak to:
El Duque
Pedro
Wagner ( to be fair, he got hurt so he might not deserve to be on the list)
schowenweiss
Omar can have a nice business planning retirements and nest eggs when he gets canned catering to high end clients like baseball players…maybe he can get a job at AIG
Hernandez and Martinez were not hurt? To be fair my A $ $
you sir are correct…my bad
/tips my hat
1st and 3rd, groundball to the pitcher. It was hit so soft that they couldn’t even turn 2.
1st and 2nd, GIDP
9th inning, 2 outs, runners on 2nd and 3rd… 3 fastballs down the middle of the plate. 0 swings!!!
But hey, he walked and was hit with a pitch, so hit OBP was pretty good last night.
WAKE UP PEOPLE…CASTILLO IS THE PROBLEM!!!!
No but “he’s got a good OBP” and “he WAS a 300 hitter, once upon a time”.
As Willie would say, “he’s one of the best #2 hitters of all-time”
as far as I can tell he has not pitched in relief once this year, he is not the problem, but he is also not the solution and that absolutely mindless at-bat last night has to send him to the pine.
I have the feeling that Ramon Martinez will start today at 2nd base.
Castillo is better at the 2 hole, he is patient at the plate, he can give Reyes chance to steal base, Manuel can use his bunt ability knowing that Wright, Delgado and Beltran are next instead of Schneider. I like better Murphy/Evans, Church and the catcher in the 6-7-8 spot, gives balance to the line up and we need it.
Castillo is better as far away from the Mets team as humanly possible. The further away he goes, the better off the Mets will be.
Castillo back in the starting lineup when the Mets were in a groove. What the !!! That was the final straw for the whole organization. I never been a fan of gutting a team, but do it already. This is really bad. Castillo last at bat should have him on the bench for the season.
Why was Marlon A. not pinch-run for the other game? I like Marlon, but why is he still here?
I thought Jerry should have PH Castro or Cancel for Schneider, then Chavez..(like Jessie said, what did Chavez do wrong?) Why is Church getting so much playing time?
I still disagree with Willie’s feeling about Alfonso Soriano. Yes he is selfish,like most, but he played 2b and leftfield. Just what the team needed. We all know everyone can’t play in New York, but Soriano could. Beltran needs to be the number 3 hitter he was bought here to be. Earlier in the year Willie should have kept Beltran at 3rd,Delgado at clean-up and Wright 5th. They were bought here to excel in those spots. If that didn’t work shuffling the line-up over and over never would. It is time for Beltran to carry us this last six games into the playoffs. Johan is good but seems like a normal pitcher in NY. I know he is ace and will be our ace once the team is re-built. For some reason Omar thought this was the fix for the whole team.
Also, this switching pitchers every batter is getting really overated. Either you got good stuff that day or you don’t. our pitching is horrible, left or right.
Just needed to vent my opinions. Another big game tonight. Oh, if Castillo is in the lineup …..
It’s difficult to win with four black holes in the lineup and that’s what the Mets are dealing with now…absolutely awful offensive players at second, catcher and in right, plus the pitcher.
Castillo is to hitting as Heilman is to pitching…
Castillo loves to bunt how come he didnt even fake a bunt when it was 1st & 2nd nobody out
Because the situation is differente when you have Wright, Delgado and Beltran behind you to bring those guys home and in this case was Shneider and the Pitcher position, that’s why IF (with a big if) you are gonna play him, the 2 hole is the only one where he can’t hurt us.
1 – If Reyes get on base, he can give him chance to steal a base.
2 – He can bunt knowing the power guys are coming behind.
3 – The posibilities are lowers for a DP with him and reyes running if Reyes still at 1st, not like the last games that when he come to bat is Delgado, Beltran and Church running and Schneider behind him.
baseball is a Team sport
Castillo has better individual stats but it doesnt contribute to a team win.
Reyes has worse individual stats but somehow inexplicably is better for the Team.
i rather have a team that wins over a player that gets on base but doesnt score.
individual stats are for fantasy baseball only.
Hey look I am all for starting him if that means wins. He lost the last time he played but lets give it a try. If he starts tonight, conviently with Johan starting, and we win then he of course can be our savior.
Just like Willie, if he is the problem then get rid of him. But when we still struggle, who’s next?
Willie has 7 up with 17 to play permanently stamped to his forehead. He WAS a problem. Enough about Willie.
Castillo brings nothing to the table. Sit him down. He’s a problem.
By the way, where is your tag team partner? Just busting your chops. ;)
I replied to this way up in the thread, but you have to wonder if Castillo just can’t play in NY. There are a ton of guys that this happens to. Castillo has prob. never been booed. There were no fans in Minn. or Florida to boo him. This is prob. the first time that he has ever been the center of attention and I think he may be cracking under the pressure.
That’s a good point. He does get boo’d every chance the fans get to. He actually got cheered last night, when he got HIT by a pitch!!
I think it has more to do with his knees, but you’re right. The boo’s pile on. He probably can’t handle it.
Oh, because getting rid of Willie fixed all Mets problems, right? It didn’t fix ANYTHING!
Hi Willie. Nice slide the other night.
Of course it change everything, with Willie still on, the team will be 1 or 2 games under .500 like when he was here.
The offense has been great the 90% of the times, games like the sunday game the bullpen has been the one giving it up we score 6 runs, with castillo in the line up too, the starter only allowed 2 runs the bullpen allowed 5…if the bullpen a least will mantain half of the blew up games, we already be division champions.
next is
the bullpen/pitching coach.
if 1 student fails its the student
if all the students fail it Must be the teacher, right?
What does Castillo care if we win, lose, or draw… or if he gets on base, or more likely K’s or hits into a DP. He’s laughing all the way to the bank with that fat four-year contract!
FIRE OMAR
Watching Castillo at the plate last night (9th inning) was hilarious…….. haaaa
Those metsis never disappoint.
Castillo is the new Ed Whitson now? He is more like Charlie Brown as he has a perpetual raincloud over his head….He has no life to his game, he’s not having fun… And Why is Reyes ‘Awful’? The guy plays hard and the team has won with him
Why are you worried that after Castillo that someone else will be scapegoated? .
With a RP a like the cubs has plenty of i like this line up.
If Castillo is Playing
1 – Reyes
2 – Castillo
3 – Beltran
4 – Delgado
5 – Wright
6 – Church
7 – Murphy
8 – Schneider
If Argenis or Ramon Martinez is playing 2B
1 – Reyes
2 – Church
3 – Beltran
4 – Delgado
5 – Wright
6 – Murphy
7 – Schneider
8 – Argenis / Ramon Martinez
Maybe Murphy will be better at 2B, but that will be next year, we have to work with what we have and Castillo is the better defense at 2B and the line up with him in the 2 hole is far more balance.
I know it goes against my “Baseball Wisdom” and I don’t really have any concrete proof of what I’m about to say and which has been mentioned many times on here by many posters but, ………………………………………..Castillo just seems to bring on this negative “Vibe” that seems to permeate the entire team and I’m really, really starting to wonder if it’s just coincidence?
There was a clear and distinct change to this team as soon as he came off the DL. The Mets were flying high just before Castillo was due back from the DL even with weak hitting (and I mean VERY weak) Reyes playing second. At least with Reyes it seemed like the team was more energized and Reyes definitely made some plays @ second that I know for sure Castillo would never even have made an attempt at.
What ever it is, when Castillo plays, the Mets lose more often than not, just look it up. Again, my intellect tells me it can’t possibly be ALL Castillo’s fault but then again, one bad apple CAN spoil the WHOLE bunch, right?
To follow up…………….that last AB by Castillo last night where he took three straight pitches down the middle has got to be the WORST AB I’ve seen all year in a crucial must-win game by a suposedly contact hitter with a good eye at the plate. If I didn’t know any better, you can almost make the case that there is no way a player with his experience and eye at the plate would give that kind of effort unless it was intentional. And if it wasn’t intentional, then he’s much worse than even I think he is.
Castillo went on the DL July 4th…..Please take a look at our record from when he left, as well. They were a .500 team until then.
My THIRD attempt at posting this … I keep editing here and there to try and remove whatever it is that’s convined the system that I’m being bad.
Here’s the bottom line, for me, and what finally convinced me (against all “logic”) that Castillo is a problem…
Castillo of late has this whole hangdog look about him that just drains the life out of everything nearby. I do think that attitude infects other players, especially those in close proximity to him (Delgado and Reyes), and it certainly seems to kill rallies pretty effectively.
The thing is, I do not believe in magic and I do not believe in jinxes, but I still think Castillo is bad for this team. There is, first of all, the overwhelming statistical evidence of this that everyone’s been mentioning for a while now. Could it be an aberration? Sure. But the longer we go, the more you have to admit that there might be something to this.
And I think that something is psychological. For a team to be firing on all cylinders, it’s not enough for them to have the physical ability. They also have to believe. To a man, they have to have the confidence that their efforts will be rewarded.
If you look to your left and see a guy who looks defeated in the top of the first inning, you can’t help but be affected by it. You can’t help but think “oh, what’s the point — we’re not going to win anyway.” And if you think that — even a little — you’re done. Done.
Whether it’s because he fans treat him badly (and they do, and it’s not right) or his knees are killing him, whether it’s because he’s hung over from clubbing or so rich he doesn’t care… whatever the reason, that’s the way Luis Castillo is carrying himself these days. And it hurts the team. It just does.
So are you saying A. Reyes should start in his place?
I’d give “Ramon Martinez” a shot, but please, not Awful Reyes.
hey james do you know what our record with “awful” reyes is?
read all the comments and am coming here at the end…. agree with you that there is no way that Castillo should ever again be in the Mets lineup. Let Reyes play – he has made plays defensively that Castillo would need a bycycle for to get
We were winning before Looie came back- the numbers speak for themselves- get him out of the lineup and never bat him 7th. With Schneider its seems like we are looking at 3 outs in a row… I like schneider though and he helped – Castillo has never helped! If you noticed Reyes was helping the club and they took him out of the lineup for Hop-A;Long!
Get Reyes back in the lineup- with that said expect Looie the Limper to bat 7th tonight!
Start Reyes
When the kids came up, the veterans focused more. There was probably a lot of discussion about the game, about the opposing pitcher. That’s a good thing for everyone. When castillo came back, the focus was probably shifted to “i hate playing for these grumpy fans”
I’ve been posting anti-Castillo pro A Reyes for a month…Castilloser is a moper…he’s infected the clubhouse before…..cut him, eat the contract and move on…If A Reyes goes O for the season, I’ll take him rather than watching another minute of Castilloser.
Same here matlack, I’ve reached a point personally (you don’t have to agree with me) that I just don’t care if Reyes strikes out EVERY single time from here till the end of the season. Anything is better than watching this loser’s mug. That last AB by Castillo last night was the last straw for me and I hope it was the last straw for Manuel as well.
Right On. I think he’s even infected my fantasy football team.
Since returning from the disabled list, Castillo has struck out 14 in 52 AB’s. Before going out, he struck out 21 times in 245 AB’s. After the strikeout on Sunday, Keith Hernandez commented “I don’t know what Luis was thinking there.” Keith usually is his biggest supporter.
Last years demons are equivalent to “Jimmy the Whale”. Someone put Jimmy the Whale back in the bathroom.
I don’t think he implied that Castillo is the root of ALL the problems. He simply stated that Castillo is hurting the team and is a glaring problem.
If you have a glaring problem on your team … take him out of the lineup and put him on the bench. I know, Reyes can’t hit. That is not an excuse to leave Castillo the human black hole in the lineup, with his limp stick and arthritic knees.
Pedro is a glaring problem on the team. Think we take him out? Our entire bullpen is a glaring problem, take them out too? Which one at this point will cost us more games from here on, Pedro and the pen or Castillo?
Pedro starts one game out of 5.
The bullpen can be taken out, if the starters and offense perform well.
For the offense to perform well, Castillo has to be sat down. Just his presence s.ucks the life out of the lineup.
…and for the starters to perform well … good defense behind them also help, which Castillo clearly doesn’t help there anymore either.