The folks at Newsday have learned that the Mets organization is souring on OF Lastings Milledge by the day and it seems more and more likely he will be traded this winter. Besides his lackluster play, his attitude has also turned off some members of the organization.

Also on the Milledge front, it appears that the Mets have had internal discussions about trading Milledge and P Aaron Heilman to Toronto in exchange for OF Vernon Wells. If the Mets are to acquire Wells, he would be moved to right field while Shawn Green would move to left.

Milledge has also been brought up in discussions involving White Sox Pitchers Javier Vazquez and Freddy Garcia, Marlins P Dontrelle Willis and Padres P Jake Peavy.

The Mets have decided to make the New Orleans Zephyrs their Triple-A farm team next season, which will drive me crazy trying to spell over the next few years. This ends an association
with Norfolk that began in 1969.

This moves the Mets from the International League
to the Pacific Coast League.

Omar Minaya and Fred Wilpon were quoted regarding the move on ESPN

“It will be more difficult moving players around, but the
bottom line is we also wanted to be in a warm-weather area,” Mets
general manager Omar Minaya said Thursday.

“In some cases, being at a major airport like New Orleans,
you've got a much easier time moving guys,” Mets chief operating
officer Jeff Wilpon said. “In Norfolk, they usually had to go
somewhere else before they could get where they had to go.”

The Tides will affiliate with the Orioles who are currently with Ottawa.

The Zephyrs signed a two-year agreement with the Mets. They
have been in New Orleans since 1993 and were with the Nationals since 1995.

“We're excited about it,” Zephyrs chief operating officer
Ronald Maestri said. “Who knows? — they might be world
champions.”

Wilpon said the Mets will contribute to the rebuilding efforts
from Hurricane Katrina.

“I'm sure we'll make a donation to the area and start it off on
the right foot,” Wilpon said. “We'll be part of the community
there like we've been everywhere else.”

The great and all knowing Metstradamus took a trip recently to see a Zephyrs game, and has some helpful travel tips and information from a fans perspective.

Baseball Prospectus' Future Shock this week highlights the best performers in the minor league playoffs. Here is what they had to say about the St. Lucie Mets catcher Jesus Flores.

Jesus Flores, C, High-A St. Lucie (Mets)

As St. Lucie went a perfect 5-0 to sweep their way to the Florida State League title, Flores reached base 13 times, going 8-for-17 with three walks and two HBPs. All this on the heels of a remarkable turnaround season in which the 21-year-old hit .266/.335/.487 and tied for the league lead with 21 home runs. His approach needs refinement, as does his work behind the plate, but catching prospects are hard to find, and Flores has clearly established himself as the Mets backstop of the future.

Baseball Prospectus gives us the prospects in each organization that took the biggest steps back or who had the most unrealized potential. Here are the Mets prospects they chose.

New York Mets

Infielder Anderson Hernandez was expected to compete
for the starting second base job or at least a utility role in the big leagues,
but he went 6-for-41 (.146) for the Mets in the season's first two weeks and
never got things going at Triple-A Norfolk, finishing at .249/.285/.295.

Honorable Mention: After leading the organization
with 36 home runs in 2005, first baseman Brett Harper lasted 19 homerless
games at Double-A Binghamton before tearing his labrum during a swing. After
giving 2005 fourth-round pick Hector Pellot a sizeable $350,000 bonus,
the second baseman hit .189/.292/.259 at Low Class A Hagerstwon.

Mike Pelfrey, Phil Humber and Deolis Guerra all made it on to Baseball Prospectus' Future Shock list of the top 20 right handed pitching prospects in baseball…

7. Mike Pelfrey, Mets

Age: 22.6 H/9: 7.57 BB/9: 3.08 K/9:
10.18

The most well-paid pitcher in the 2005 draft, Pelfrey signed too
late to make his debut last year, but he reached the big leagues this season
after just 88 pro innings. At 6-foot-7, Pelfrey gets a strong downward plane
on a sinking 92-95 mph fastball that has touched 98, and he commands the pitch
well when many young and tall pitching prospects struggle to find a consistent
release point. For anyone who saw his four big league starts, in which he had
a 5.48 ERA and a sub-standard 13/12 K/BB ratio in 21.1 innings, Pelfrey's
issues were clear. While the fastball is plus-plus, both his curveball and
changeup are no more than average, and he lost confidence in the pitches,
learning a difficult lesson about the need for a three-pitch arsenal. He's
expected to get another look in September as the Mets put things into cruise
control, so we'll see if he's made any adjustments. The secondary pitches
don't have to be great, but he will need them to keep hitters on
their toes.

14. Phil Humber, Mets

Age: 23.7 H/9: 6.99 BB/9: 2.52 K/9:
9.65

Another one of those pitchers who had Tommy John surgery,
returned quicker than expected and has looked as good as he ever did, if not
better. Pitching very well in Double-A, both he and Pelfrey will compete for
Opening Day rotation slots in 2007.

19. Deolis Guerra, Mets

Age: 17.4 H/9: 6.75 BB/9: 4.39 K/9:
7.18

His ratios aren't great, but this is a guy born in 1989
(feel old yet?) who is already in the Florida State League and holding his
own. Sitting at 89-91 mph with plenty of projection thanks to a 6-foot-5, 200
pound frame, Guerra's changeup is already a solid offering and his curveball
has made great strides. The Mets need to slow down his development, but his
ceiling is sky high.

Mack's Mets posts an interesting article of minor leaguers who might have worn out their welcome in the Mets system and might be clogging up the system. Mack gives a list of players who might be good candidates for a flushing to make room for new talent.

Mack also makes a great observation that, although the Mets seemed to have some issues right now with their starting pitching, soon they could have a surplus of young major league ready arms.

From Inside Pitch Magazine…

Bannister struck out five and walked one. News out of Norfolk is that Oliver Perez has rediscovered his velocity in the Mets attempt to bring him back to being a power pitcher after he was tinkered with in Pittsburg to become more of a finesse pitcher.

Evan MacLane has been impressive as well, pitching a complete game shutout recently. His 92 strikesouts rank fifth in the organization.

Norfolk Tides website reports…

Bannister would be a dark horse candidate to replace Pedro in the rotation should he need extended rest for his strained calf.

Toby's Mets Minor League Report reminds us that Bannister would be on short rest to replace Pedro's scheduled start, not a particular good idea considering Bannister is coming off an injury.

Toby reports that Evan MacLane pitches today for the Tides at 2PM and Phil Humber throws tonight for Binghamton.

Here's a rundown of this weekends minor league action courtesy of the fantastic Toby's Mets Minor League Report…

Norfolk Tides (AAA)

Saturday

Edgardo Alfonzo drilled a homerun and
drove home three in a 2-4 night in support of MacLane.  The only other Tide with two hit was Tagg Bozied who was 2-3 with a solo HR
and two runs scored. 

Catcher Yunir Garcia started his first game for
Norfolk, after
one pinch hitting appearance, and was 1-3.

Sunday

Sandy Martinez slugged
a walk-off homer in the ninth inning to lead the Tides to a win at Harbor Park, he also
drove in a run with a fourth-inning double.

Heath Bell
(3-2) picked up the win in relief of Jose
Lima who was pitching a shutout until surrendering four runs in the sixth
inning.

Binghamton Mets (AA)

Saturday

Jorge Padilla doubled twice in a 2-4
performance with two runs scored. 

Chase Lambin launched a solo HR as
well.

Sunday

St Lucie Mets (A+)

Saturday

Caleb Stewart won this game with a
three run HR in the bottom of the ninth for St. Lucie. Stewart
also doubled and scored twice in a 2-5 night. 
Carp, in addition to starting the ninth inning rally doubled and drove
home a run. 

Sal Aguilar turned in a nice start,
allowing two runs in seven innings.  He struck
out two and walked two.

Carlos Muniz blew the save in the ninth
by giving up a run, but Stewart’s blast made him a winner.

Sunday

Jose Coronado’s
three-run, eighth-inning single proved to be the margin, as St. Lucie battled
back from a big deficit and shaky starting pitching to beat Vero Beach at historic Holman Stadium.  (Ed: If you had trouble with the concept of a
three-run single, you weren’t alone. 
Coronado himself scored the third run on the play on a throwing error on
Vero’s catcher.  This, my friends, is
minor league baseball.)

Carlos Muniz
pitched the final out of the game to pick up his 27th save of the season.

Hagerstown Suns (A-)

Saturday

Deolis Guerra (5-7) allowed just one run in his five innings on two hits.  He walked three and struck out three,
lowering his ERA to 2.35.

Centerfielder
Sean Henry, who was converted from
SS this year, and promoted this week from Kingsport,
was 2-3 with two doubles.

Sunday

Jeramy Simmons (1-2) was sharp through seven innings, allowing
just two runs and four hits, but ran out of gas in the eighth, allowing a pair
of singles and then a double, which scored a run, to start off the inning.

Ryan Meyers couldn’t put out the fire,
giving up a single and two more runs before finally quelling the uprising.

Kevin Tomasiewicz slammed the door and
picked up his 15th save.

Carlos Gomez and Fernando Martinez make the list of Baseball America's top centerfield prospects in the minor leagues…

5. Fernando Martinez, Mets

Age: 17.8 Hitting: .333/.386/.532 in 51 G (1
R/45 A-/5 A+)

Martinez was the big prize in last year's international
signing period, as the Mets won a bidding war for his services with a $1.4
million bonus. Point No. 1: 17-year-old players are not supposed to be ready
for full-season leagues. Point No. 2: 17-year-old players are certainly not
supposed to be good enough to earn a promotion to High Class A by getting a hit
in every three at-bats. Martinez is a ridiculous offensive talent with ability
well beyond his years, but he still has room for improvement. He's coming
into his power, which should at least be average, and while he's a free
swinger, he gets away with it because of tremendous plate coverage. The only
knock against him is his defense. A slightly above-average runner now, his
instincts in center are lacking, and he'll almost assuredly need to move to a
corner in the not-so-distant future. This is a still remarkable season for
such a young player, and over the next couple of years we will figure out if he
develops into an ideal number two hitter, or a middle-of-the-order power
threat.

9. Carlos Gomez, Mets

Age: 20.7 Hitting: .287/.347/.431 in 93 G (AA)

The Mets don't have just one toolsy outfielder moving
quickly through their system, they have two. The organization has always loved
Gomez's long body and outstanding tools, but strating him this year at
Double-A seemed curious, if not downright wrong. Only 20 years old at the
start of the year and coming off an uninspiring .275/.331/.376 campaign at Low
Class A Hagerstown, his performance didn't merit skipping a level, and he was
overmatched in the first half of the season, with his batting average sitting at
.211 at the end of May when he hit the disabled list with a back injury.
Whatever happened during that time off changed everything, as Gomez now has
pretty respectable numbers thanks to a nifty .406 (41-for-101) average in
July. While Gomez hasn't shown much power, scouts believe it's in him, and
he's very close to establishing new career highs in doubles, triples and home
runs with almost a month still to go in the season. He's a plus-plus runner with 95
stolen bases in the last two years, and he covers a ton of ground in the
outfield while featuring a strong, accurate arm. Gomez still needs to refine
his approach, as with 73 strikeouts and just 17 walks in 344 at-bats, he
doesn't work well at the top of the order, and his speed has less value at the
bottom. The Mets can afford to slow him down a little, and he might repeat
Double-A next year.

Dave Williams tossed a three hitter over
6.0 innings of work for the Mets Triple-A Tidewater affiliate, striking out six without walking a batter, yielding just an
unearned run in the 4th inning. The
27-year-old lefty has not allowed an earned run in 14.0 innings of
work since coming off the disabled list with a strained shoulder on
July 30.

Williams has allowed just six hits while
walking one and striking out nine, in that stretch.

Mets minor leaguer makes this weeks Baseball Prospectus Future Shock Ten Pack…

Fernando Martinez, of, High Class A St. Lucie
(Mets)

Martinez was the prize in last year's international signing
period as the Mets won a bidding war to ink the toolsy Dominican for
$1.4
million. In his brief pro career, Martinez has proven to be much,
much more than just a raw package of athleticism; he has shown himself
to be a very good
baseball player as well. After missing nearly a month with a strained
knee, Martinez hit .361 in 14 games for Low Class A Hagerstown to raise
his averages to
.333/.389/.505, earning a promotion to the Florida State League, an
assignment
nearly unheard of for a 17-year-old. He went 3-for-13 over the weekend
in his
first three games for St. Lucie, and led off Sunday's game with a home
run.
Although his reviews as a defender in center field are poor, his
offensive
accomplishments at his age move him into elite status.

Check out Adam Rubin's interview with Mets' Minor League Pitching Coordinator Rick Waits regarding Oliver Perez's debut for the Mets Triple-A Norfolk Tides on his Daily News Blog.

Perez (1-4) struggled in his debut, allowing
seven runs on six hits in 2.2 innings of work. He struck
out four and walked four but Waits saw some positives to take away from his appearance.

Here's a highlight

“[Perez] was missing down a lot, which is a good sign.
He just had a little problem with his fastball command. We're going to
go to work today. This is the first day in a lot of ways. You've got to
let a guy throw and take a look at him.

The thing I saw last night that was well is he's got an
electric arm with his fastball and a real sharp slider. Just like with
a lot of pitchers we're going to work on a consistent delivery. The
game wasn't good last night. But the first inning he got the bases
loaded and no out and should have gotten out of it. The umpire missed a
call at third. He ended up giving up just one run. I liked the way he
battled.

We really haven't done a lot with him yet. He just got
here. We wanted him to pitch. There's a lot of things we're going to
discover.”

Brian Bannister was shelled in his second rehab start in Triple-A Norfolk, giving up seven runs and eleven hits while walking and striking out one in 4 2/3 innings before he was yanked. He struggled from the beginning, needing 31 pitches to get through the first inning. 

MLB.com quotes Bannister after his rough outing.

“They absolutely killed my cut-fastball tonight. We've been working
real heavily on my curveball and changeup while I've been on the DL. I
haven't thrown the cutter much. They got three home runs off the
cutter. It's obviously my weakness right now, but in the past it's been
my best pitch.

“It's just a feel thing. I've just got to get out there and get in the
rhythm again, keep the ball down and get that good movement back,” said
the righty, who fanned eight and worked seven scoreless frames in a 7-0
win with Class A St. Lucie this past Tuesday.