Daily Archives: May 4, 2009
In a must-read report for the Daily News, John Harper believes there will be 
a target on Omar Minaya if this season does not work out for the Mets.
…it will be interesting… the team’s ownership likes minaya a lot, and they have a long history together… however, it will be difficult to justify allowing him to re-structure this team if he is the very person who created the problem in the first place…
Harper continues on to write about Minaya’s comments to Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com last week, in which he essentially said ‘the Mets are soft and do not play with an in-your-face mentality,’ as Harper put it.
Minaya later told local reporters that Rosenthal misinterpreted his comments, and that his team simply had a ‘different kind of edge,’ which players like David Wright and Jose Reyes did not seem happy about hearing, according to multiple reports.
…to me, the most significant portion of harper’s column, which, again, is a must read, is the following…
In the reports, Harper writes:
“You hate to always go back to the ’86 Mets, but in this case it’s hard not to. Imagine if Carlos Beltran was on that ballclub and he essentially cost his team a win because he didn’t slide at home, as was the case in St. Louis a couple of weeks ago… I’d put the over/under at five on the number of players on that team who would have told him he better not let it happen again, whether he’s leading the league in hitting or not… On this team? I asked a Mets player privately over the weekend if anyone had said a word to Beltran about it, and he shook his head in a “what-are-you-gonna-do?” kind of way.”
Sheffield, who Minaya told Rosenthal he acquired because of his ‘edge,’ told Harper, “The talent is here… We just need to play with fire.”
Kevin Kernan of the New York Post provides more quotes from Sheffield, who says: “We’ve got to learn how to play with intensity when we’re losing… You don’t have to be a rah-rah guy, you don’t have to be the loudest guy, but there has to be something inside you that ain’t going to allow you to lose.”
To read more from Sheffield, read Kernan in the New York Post.
Again, to read Harper’s column, go to the Daily News.
Tagged Omar Minaya |
In a post to his blog for the News Journal, Scott Lauber relays a conversation he had with Phillies reliever Ryan Madsen regarding the Mets and Phillies.
Madsen, as quoted by Lauber:
“Some of the guys on their team just wouldn’t fit in our clubhouse, and some of the guys here just wouldn’t fit with their guys. That’s just how it is… It’s one of those things where it’s like two totally different mentalities, two different attitudes, everything. We just don’t believe in the same things. Our two teams, it’s like oil and water.”
According to Lauber, “Madson didn’t come right out and say it, but the implication was clear. There is just something about the makeup of this Phillies team - call it ‘heart,’ call it ‘mental toughness,’ call it whatever you want - that the Mets simply don’t seem to have.”
…i believe the word you are looking for ryan is ‘edge,’ or lackthereof, like Omar Minaya alluded to on Friday, here, then backtracked from later that night, here…
Tagged Phillies |
Today at 11 am, I will be a guest on Baseball Digest Live, which you can to listen to live here.
Also on the show, Mark Healy will talk with Red Sox broadcaster Joe Castiglione; film critic and Royal fan Jeffery Lyons; and Tony Cincotta from FantasyPros911.com.
Lastly, my regularly-scheduled guest appearance on The Natural with Greg Marotta on WVNJ 1160 AM will be today at 4:15 pm.
To listen live, tune in to 1160 AM, or go here.
In a column for the Bergen Record, Bob Klapisch thinks the Wilpons deserve a refund after Oliver Perez‘s recent horrific outing.
…”knee injury” or not, perez should be sent to buffalo and not come back until he works out his issues, whatever they may be…what i find funny is the numerous amateur pitching coaches that have called into WFAN providing their two cents on perez’s delivery…no offense to those of you who have done this, but seriously people, let the professionals figure this out…
Over at NY Baseball Digest, Joesph DelGrippo wonders why Jerry Manuel decided not to use Frankie Rodriguez in a tie-game on the road.
…it doesn’t go by “the book,” but delgrippo makes an interesting argument not to, even using manuel’s contradictory statements against himself…
Amazin’ Avenue takes a look at the impressive repotiore of Ken Takahashi.
For all your Mets triples history, check out Mets Walkoffs.
Tagged Mike Nichols |
‘Oliver Perez is in the bullpen until further notice,’ writes David Lennon in a report for Newsday.
Manuel, who met with Dan Warthen and Randy Niemann and talked with Omar Minaya by phone yesterday, told reporters the team has yet to make an official decision, though they will likely make an announcement during the team’s trip in Atlanta.
…from what i can gather, if he’s pitching from the bullpen, the announcement will come sooner than later, maybe even monday… if he’s going on the disabled list, the team will likely wait until later in the week…
However, suddenly, Perez had an ice pack on his knee Sunday morning in Citizen’s Bank Park, during which he told reporters, according to Lennon: “The knee has been bothering me all season… This is my first time pitching with something that bothers me. That’s not easy.”
…well, isn’t that convenient…
In the New York Times, Ben Shpigel writes:
“Just as he was about to address his murky future, Perez was intercepted by Jay Horwitz, the team’s vice president for media relations, who spoke with him in the trainer’s room for about 10 minutes… When he came out, Perez said that his knee had been bothering him all season. Asked which knee, he paused and looked down. The right one, he said.”
Following Saturday’s loss, Perez said he would consider a trip to the minor leagues.
However, prior to yesterday’s rainout, Perez said he now can’t say whether or not he will accept a minor league assignment.
…i bet one of the following two scenarios shake out: 1) perez is sent to the bullpen, and Ken Takahashi starts on Friday against the Phillies, or 2) perez is put on the disabled list, and the Mets call up one of Nelson Figueroa or Dillon Gee, or Tim Redding, depending on how he does in his rehab start on Tuesday…
By the way, due to yesterday’s rainout, the Mets pushed back their rotation, meaning Johan Santana will pitch Thursday on six-days rest, while Perez’s spot in the rotation will be Friday.
Tagged Oliver Perez |
Carlos Delgado had been in yesterday’s lineup before the game was rained out.
Delgado told reporters his hip is not 100 percent, but a trip to the disabled list will not make it better – instead, he will ‘play through the pain.’
For what it’s worth, Wily Mo Pena is hitting .313 with one home run in five games since joining Triple-A Buffalo, during which he has started two games at first base, a position he never played during his seven-year major league career.
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