Daily Archives: February 16, 2010
This is video from SNY of Jose Reyes working out and talking with reporters today:
According to Lennon, “We’ll talk Reyes, Murphy, Jacobs, Thole, Santos, the Ickey Shuffle.”
According to Brian Costa of the Star Ledger, Mets GM Omar Minaya has said Henry Blanco will be the team’s back-up catcher, “We don’t see him as a full-time guy.”
So, in terms of the starting catcher, Minaya said, “It’s going to be between Omir Santos and Josh Thole.”
The 23–year-old Thole hit .321 with three extra base hits in 17 games for the Mets last season.
…from what i can gather, the team’s pitchers were actually quite impressed with how well he received the ball, for someone who had not been catching for too many years… he was very solid… i always got the impression, in a perfect world, someone else steps up to take the starting job early, so thole can go to the minors and get a bit more work, get comfortable, then probably come up mid season, when whomever won the job starts to fade… but, hey, if thole can take it from the get go, why not…
According to SNY, Jose Reyes was at Tradition Field today for an informal workout, where he did some jogging, took batting practice, fielding ground balls, and did agility drills.
Reyes said he is not nervous, but, instead, he is excited to be back on the field for the first time since August.
“I’ve been doing so much of my rehab without the team,” he explained. “But, now, to be back with my team, is really exciting… I feel like a little kid, bro.”
He said he has nothing to be afraid of, “I’m able to do everything I want to do.”
…i am hoping to get some video of jose for MetsBlog later in the day… but, in either case, be sure to check out SNY’s SportsNite, which first airs at 10 pm…
Mike Jacobs and Daniel Murphy worked together, fielding ground balls at first base.
Jacobs also also took batting practice in front of hitting coach Howard Johnson.
Updated at 2:10 pm:
To see video of Reyes talking to reporters at his locker, check out Brian Costa’s blog, here.
For pictures of Reyes, check out Adam Rubin’s blog, here, and David Lennon’s blog, here.
In a post to his blog for ESPN.com, Buster Olney outlines the best-case scenario for each team in baseball, which he describes for the Mets as:
“The key guys - Johan Santana, Jose Reyes, David Wright, Francisco Rodriguez - all stay healthy, and Carlos Beltran comes back in May and stays on the field… The Mets regular catcher - whoever that turns out to be - has a surprisingly good season… Luis Castillo replicates his play of 2009… And above all else, Oliver Perez goes back to being the lefty with dominant stuff.”
[poll id="353"]
…i know the the Mets just signed Jason Bay, who plays left field… i realize Carlos Beltran is under contract for 2011, after which he is a free agent… but, man, oh, man, crawford would be a great to have in Citi Field… not only is he an awesome player, and young, but he’s known for being one of the hardest working players in the game… of course, everyone and their brother believes the Yankees intend to bid hard for him… in addition, i realize the Mets love Ike Davis, but Carlos Pena will be hard to ignore, as well… for what it’s worth, there has been talk about whether ike can play right field, since he has a rocket-launcher arm…
Bill Ladson of MLB.com says the Nationals have agreed to terms with RHP Chien-Ming Wang.
…he isn’t going to be ready until May, but I wouldve really liked to see the Mets sign him…he wouldve been a great fit at Citi Field with that sinker, assuming his shoulder is healthy…
In a report for the New York Post, Mike Puma quotes Mets GM Omar Minaya as saying he would like to see one pitcher emerge to be the team’s lone, eighth-inning set-up man to Francisco Rodriguez.
Puma lists Kelvim Escobar, Ryota Igarashi and Bobby Parnell as the main candidates, “with Sean Green also in the mix.”
In January, Minaya told WFAN that Escobar has the potential to be a dominant set-up man.
The 33–year-old Escobar was 18–7 with a 3.40 ERA in 30 starts for the Angels in 2007; he had a 3.61 ERA in 30 starts for the Angels in 2006. However, he did not pitch in 2008, having shoulder surgery in June.
…when healthy, he has incredible stuff… no question… he has a nasty splitter, which he commands quite well… but, it’s all about being healthy for escobar…
To read quotes from Minaya on the open competition, read Puma’s report here.
Meanwhile, in a post to his blog for the Daily News, Adam Rubin talks with Green, who explains how Dan Warthen helped him re-work his delivery last summer, to be more like a ‘righthanded version of Pedro Feliciano.’
Green had a 5.54 ERA in the first half of last season, during which opponents hit .261 against him, and he allowed at least one run in 28 percent of his appearances.
However, he had a 3.23 ERA in the second half, during which opponents hit just .211 against him, while he allowed at least one run in just 20 percent of his appearances.
…of course, green’s Batting Average on Balls in Play was around .400 in August, when he had a 5.91 ERA, while it was around .200 in September, when he had a 2.79 ERA… in other words, he’s probably some place right in the middle, or like he pitched in May, i.e., an ERA a bit over 4.00, while always needing a really, really good infield defense behind him… i don’t see him as a set-up man… he always struck me as a guy who, again, assuming he has a good infield defense behind him, should be brought in to a game with runners on and one out, in hopes of getting a ground ball…
Such as, “Oliver Perez is working on a knuckleball.”
Click below to see pictures of Mike Jacobs and Daniel Murphy taking grounders at first base, as well as Jose Reyes, Mike Jacobs and Howard Johnson talking in the outfield:
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