“this is going to be a long two plus weeks. i might as well just tune out.” -comment on Metsblog, 13 minutes after the report that Carlos Beltran was going on the 15-day DL with a bone bruise on his right knee.

The quote above is just piece of a large sample size of panic and depression in the Met blogosphere yesterday afternoon. Carlos Beltran is joining the All-Star team that is the Met disabled list (currently occupied by former All-Stars Carlos Delgado, Jose Reyes, JJ Putz and Billy Wagner). While the number of injuries have become borderline comical (Met trainers may disagree), the next few weeks may be a very fun time to be a Met fan.

Why? Because everyone loves an underdog.

As a blogger who can do a one man show of Major League, the first four Rocky movies and cannot make it through Rudy without a box of Kleenex, I can vouch for a potentially great underdog story. From now until the DL-stars return, the Mets have their own underdog story for the first time in a seemingly long while. Recently, Met fandom has consisted of high expectations and shocking heartbreak. Now, the Mets can return to their roots as the lovable underdog. The Mets are not the Yankees. The Mets are the organization that goes to the World Series with the dynamic outfield of Benny Agbayani, Jay Payton and Timo Perez (with another underdog trio, the “Baha Men,” leading them all the way).

Last night was a picture perfect example of what an underdog story could be. The Mets trotted out a lineup with 16 total home runs (2 per regular). On the opposing side stood Albert Pujols, 26 home runs and the most imposing bat in the big leagues (Think Haywood (link) from Major League). Nonetheless, our lovable underdogs executed and took the first game of a four-game series against a first-place team.

And what would an underdog story be without individual underdog stories (Think Rocky, Vinny Papale, Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger, Jake Taylor and the “Cerrano v. Curve Balls” storyline):

• Underdog Omir Santos: The 28 year old catcher was signed to a minor league contract in January. Coming into the season Santos was 1-10 in a few appearances for the Orioles last September. Santos went 4-4 yesterday with an RBI and is hitting .298 with four home runs and 23 RBIs in just 121 at bats.

• Underdog Luis Castillo: While Castillo has been far from perfect this season, he could be quite the satisfying underdog story. You may be asking: Can an underperforming $24 million man be an underdog? The answer is an emphatic YES. He was left for dead by Met fans (myself included) in the off-season. Even Manuel sounded as if Castillo was gone. Last September, Ramon Martinez started over Castillo down the stretch. Ramon Martinez. Then the infamous dropped pop up. If anyone needs redemption, it is Luis Castillo. Last night, in a night for underdogs, Castillo went 3-3 with a bunt single, a well-hustled infield hit to lead off a crucial eighth inning and an RBI double. Castillo also scored the fifth and sixth runs in the game in a 6-4 game and made an impressive play in the field, snagging a ground ball from up the middle and throwing the runner out from his knees.

• Underdog Brian Stokes: Forced into the set-up role due to an overused bullpen, Stokes got Albert Pujols (Haywood) to ground into a 1-6-3 double play. Stokes was sent to the Mets for cash considerations by the Rays just before they disassociated themselves with the Devil. Translation: a 66-win team gave up on him. Today he got the best hitter in Baseball to ground into a double play in a 5-4 game.

• Underdog Tim Redding: Winless this season and potentially pitching for a spot in the rotation, Redding gave the Mets seven efficient innings and kept the Mets in the game against a solid lineup. That is what you want from a fifth starter, especially with an exhausted bullpen.

• Tomorrow the Mets have underdog story Livan Hernandez on the mound followed by a Wednesday night start by uber-underdog Fernando Nieve.

• More underdogs that could step up: Ryan Church, Fernando Martinez (recently self-made underdog), Daniel Murphy (stepped up today), Jeremy Reed and Fernando Tatis. And let us not forget the season-long underdog story involving Gary Sheffield.

Another notable underdog story comes from the Mets’ resident league-leading hitter, David Wright. His leadership skills have been questioned and now he is the unquestioned leader. Can he carry a subpar lineup like Mike Piazza did for so many years? In that respect, Wright is a unique underdog story amongst a slew of obvious underdog stories. If Fernando Tatis continues to hit fourth, Wright may not see a strike for the entire stretch but it is nonetheless an important few weeks for the young “slugger.”

The Mets are not going to sweep through the Cardinals, Yankees, Brewers, Pirates (make up game) and Phillies. They may not even break .500. Or they could break .750.  Who knows. Obviously, it is easy to have a team full of “underdogs” with a depressingly depleted roster but if the Mets remain in the playoff hunt, fans should drink some “Underdog Kool-Aid” (link) and enjoy the show.

All that being said, I would not mind if Delgado, Beltran, Reyes, Putz and Wagner returned to full health as soon as humanly possible. Underdog stories are fun but be wary of an underdog story gone awry (Think Major League 3 and of course, Rocky V).

I recently came across a humorous blog post that ranked the top 25 steroid users in MLB history. It gave me a good laugh. There are a few former Mets on the list. Thankfully, a personal (fallen) hero of mine, Todd Hundley, was spared. Here are a few highlights:

8. Alex Rodriguez (the best player in baseball history to have zero fans)

10. Gary Mathhews Jr. (one can only imagine how disappointed gary matthews sr. must be)

14. Paul Lo Duca (intimate bromance with steroid-provider chronicled in series of notes which include exclamation points and possibly invisible ink declaring “more than just bromance” feelings)

16. Rick Ankiel (pitcher with no control + steroids = power hitter whose name still always makes me think of an ankle)

24. Matt Franco (the nephew of Kurt Russell juiced up for his own little escape from new york)

25. Ozzie Canseco (jose’s identical twin took sibling rivalry to the next level as both vied for steroid supremacy)

Click here to view the full article and the number one steroid user of all-time (according to Blake Harris).

If for some reason Jerry Manuel feels he would like to try a normal bullpen (as opposed to his four-man ‘pen as pointed out by Rob Harding), check out these two kids:

• For your righty, Eddie Kunz has played in 17 games this year for AAA Buffalo Bison.  Kunz was the Mets’ #1 draft choice in 2007 out of Oregon State University.  Throughout his games for Buffalo, Kunz is yet to start but has thrown 29.2 innings.  Opponents average just .202 against this 23-year-old, mid-90s fastball prospect.
• For your lefty, Adam Bostick opened the season 3-0 in 11 appearances for AA Binghamtom.  He was promoted to AAA Buffalo and has since thrown 6.2 innings of near-perfect ball.  Batters have only walked three times, while haven’t hit Bostick once.  This 26-year-old may be a good replacement for Ken Takahashi.

In my opinion, I don’t think Takahashi is a major league pitcher — at least not for the New York Mets.  I’ll give Jon Switzer his credit for pitching well last night, but frankly I don’t believe he’s a major league pitcher either.  Brian Stokes is absolutely a major league pitcher.  If it was up to me the bullpen would consist of K-Rod, Parnell, Green, Feliciano, Stokes, Bostick, Kunz.

Jerry Manuel is close to finishing up his first 162 games as manager of the New York Mets and has now managed the “Heartbreak Kids” for a full year (as of about 3am yesterday morning, the anniversary of Willie Randolph’s long night). After 156 games and one year, Manuel has compiled an 88-68 record. Davey Johnson and Bud Harrelson are the only Met managers to pick up 90 wins in their first 162 games. Manuel needs to go 2-4 in the next week to reach the 90-win mark.

Despite the Davey Johnson’s and the Gil Hodges’s that have managed the Mets, Bud Harrelson has the best record of any Met manager in his first 162 games. Harrelson compiled an impressive 94-68 record to start his Met managerial campaign (which ended 112 games after his 162nd game). Harrelson’s situation in 1991 is eerily similar to Manuel’s current situation. Harrelson took over for Davey Johnson in 1990 and managed the team to a 71-49 record just missing out on the division to the Barry Bonds and Bobby Bonilla-led Pittsburgh Pirates. Manuel took over for Randolph in June and went 58-38 leading the Mets to a much less satisfying second-place finish. Harrelson was fired at the end of the 1991 season.

A look at how other notable Met managers have fared in their first full season (162 games):

• Willie Randolph: 83-79 (2005)
• Art Howe: 67-95 (2003-2004)
• Bobby Valentine: 83-79 (1996-1997)
• Gil Hodges: 73-89 (1968)
• Yogi Berra: 87-75 (1972-1973)
• Davey Johnson: 90-72 (1984)

The NL East Standings since June 17, 2008:

1. Mets:       88-68           —         (34-35 on 6/17/2008)
2. Phillies:  86-67           .5         (42-30 on 6/17/2008)
3. Marlins:  78-80          11         (38-32 on 6/17/2008)
4. Braves:    67-88         20.5      (35-36 on 6/17/2008)
5. Nationals: 47-106     39.5      (29-42 on 6/17/2008)

A look at how a few notable 2008/2009 Mets have fared since June 17, 2008 (I am not looking for any sort of correlation here. Simply an FYI):

David Wright: 152 games, .337 AVG, .426 OBP, 25 HRs, 109 RBIs, 25 SBs

Carlos Beltran: 149 games, .308 AVG, .405 OBP, 25 HRs, 103 RBIs, 23 SBs

Jose Reyes: 127 games, .294 AVG, .358 OBP, 10 HRs, 54 RBIs, 42 SBs, 10 CS, 16 3B

Carlos Delgado: 117 games, .295 AVG, .375 OBP, 33 HRs, 106 RBIs

Johan Santana: 32 starts, 17-6, 215.2 IP, 60 ER, 2.50 ERA, 209 Ks, 61 BBs

Mike Pelfrey: 30 starts, 14-7, 180 IP, 66 ER, 3.30 ERA, 100 Ks, 56 BBs

Manuel has certainly had his share of ups and downs in the past year. The most glaring “down” being his inability to shake the Mets out of their late September funk. Manuel’s 88-68 record is definitely not indicative of a spectacular first year. Manuel has made his share of dubious moves but his overall record is impressive (especially in light of the Met 2008 “bullpen” and 2009 “obstacles”).

The real test is on its way: Can Manuel keep the Mets in the playoff hunt while key stars linger on the disabled list? Manuel has been tested and the Mets are still in contention. Devastating injuries, dropped pop-ups, a Swine Flu scare, Oliver Perez; yet the Mets remain within reach of both the wild card and the division.

If the Mets are in contention when Delgado, Reyes and Wagner make their respective triumphant returns, then Manuel has completed an impressive first step on the road to managerial security. Step two involves October baseball and freeing the Mets (and their fans) from a two-year September funk. Will Manuel be a Bud Harrelson-like sidenote in the Met managerial record books or something more? We should have a better idea in four months.

I was really glad when Daniel Murphy was brought north with the big club out of Spring Training, and even made him my first Man-Crush of the Week back in March, but I don’t remember the last time he looked as good as he did late last season and early this season.

The struggling Murphy has only 1 hit in 10 ABs, with 2 walks and striking out 4 times.  He has only 2 RBI for the month of June.

I really like the kid, but it’s been a rough go for him for quite awhile now.  I understand the argument that skipper Jerry Manuel shuffles the lineup too much for him to get into a groove, but the truth remains.  Daniel Murphy just doesn’t look like a major lea…WHAT?!

How could Luis Castillo DROP THAT BALL!?  Are you kidding me?!  Forget Murphy. Luis, who’s grossly overpaid for too long by the way, cost the Mets what would’ve been one of the best wins of the entire year.  He erased David Wright’s clutch hit against Mariano Rivera to take the lead.  He erased Francisco Rodriguez’s 17th save in 17 tries.  He completely ruined Friday night for countless Mets fans.  I’m pretty sure he kicked your dog before vandalizing your car with the words “Tex Hustled Home!”  Also, the recession was his fault.  And ANOTHER thing…

Alright, breathe…

I’m calm now, I swear.  In the grand scheme of things, maybe that game won’t mean anything, but there’s no way you can give games away like that.

For the week between June 8th – June 14th, Luis Castillo is hitting–

You know what?  Who cares what he hit last week.  Give a glove to a cat, send the cat to second base, and the cat makes that play.  I’m just…I’m done.

Luis Castillo, you’re in the Dog House.

As explained by Matt Cerrone from Mets Blog, the Mets are considering a variety of new songs for the 8th inning sing-a-long to replace Sweet Caroline.  Among the suggestions up for vote are ‘I Like it Like That’, ‘Shout’ (a personal favorite) and ‘Curly Shuffle.’

Here are my suggestions for some tunes that would be fantastic for the Citi Field atmosphere.  Some of these suggestions are serious, others . . .well, not so much. 

• The Safety Dance, by Men Without Hats – just remember, “we can dress real neat from our hats to our feet and surprise them with a victory cry.” (If this song is played, the music video is a must as well)

• In the Summertime, by Mungo Jerry – I just listen to this song and think of a day game in July.

• America, by Neil Diamond – what says baseball like the United States of America?  Besides, this could set a wonderful precedent in which only Neil Diamond songs are allowed to be sung during sporting events. 
  —

  ——–

•  Rock the Casbah, by the Clash – amusing, exciting, American, and a fun chorus to sing-a-long with. 

Any self-respecting Mets fan was watching that ESPN Sunday Night Baseball matchup between the New York Mets and the San Francisco Giants. It was an entirely frustrating game, especially when bringing to a close a very uplifting Mets-Giants series. Mike Pelfrey balked three times, two of which led to the only Giants’ runs, and the Mets offense could not take advantage of a Matt Cain who had little control and was above 110 pitches in the sixth inning. The ESPN commentary only added to the frustration.

Hot Foot’s Dave Rosado hit the two main topics of discussion between Joe Morgan and Steve Phillips in those early, carefree innings. Morgan stupidly said the Mets were playing poorly even though they were winning during their 11-2 stretch. I wonder if Morgan was thinking about gaffes that happened in the Braves-Mets series, a series in which the Mets lost two out of three. If the Mets’ big blunders came in the two losses over that stretch, then where’s the proof that the Mets were playing poorly in their wins? He then contradicted himself, saying the most important part of baseball was winning, implying that you’d rather win and play poorly than lose and play great. The Mets weren’t playing poorly over that stretch, but even if they were, yes, winning is the object of games, and yes, winning would be better. If we determine champions and divisions by who wins the most, then how do we determine “playing well” and “playing poorly”? One might guess that Morgan expects perfection out of teams, or maybe Morgan in his national baseball perspective of the game only sees so much of each team and makes broad assumptions about the soundbytes and big game-defining plays he sees on Sportscenter.

Phillips certainly seems to be taking this approach. Matt Cerrone over at Metsblog brought up the point that ESPN already had a pre-packaged Carlos Beltran gaffe collection video, as Phillips reached the podium and became the prosecutor of the Mets centerfielder and his 7-year contract. Yes, it’s certainly ironic considering who is the man making the argument. He didn’t always make the wisest decisions on how to spend money, did he? Anyway, he made a blustery argument that a Mets fan has heard a million times (usually from national television voices or Phillies fans) about how there is no LEADERSHIP on the Mets. Essentially, he is saying that it’d be better to have a man who does not play as well as Beltran but has GRIT and DETERMINATION. When Phillips said he’d consider trading Beltran after the year if the Mets failed yet again, thus breaking up the core, even Morgan was upset by this. Phillips’ definition of “inconsistent” play is based off a few highlights. He discounts an outfielder so graceful that he makes hard plays look easy with his range, speed and accurate route running.

Phillips also trotted out this notion of a “perfect” player as if every team has about two or three on hand except the Mets. Completely ignoring statistics, he said Beltran was unclutch and inconsistent. Read Ted Berg’s excellent column for SNY.tv, taking Phillips to task. Regular readers of Berg’s column will note that he’s a huge fan of Beltran, but he backs up his points, which is more than I can say for Phillips. He was too wrapped up into reading into Beltran’s behavior, wondering if his quietness translated into carelessness and his lack of firey speeches and in-your-face actions translated to laziness. Phillips should probably not make wild assumptions like that.

As my father and I watched the game, my father showed disgust over the commentary, and he’s not even a Mets fan. Perhaps he sympathize with me. “These three-man teams do not work,” he said. Thinking of Gary Cohen, Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling, I replied, “They do work. It just depends on who it is.” Perhaps even a team of Joe Buck, Tim McCarver and Fran Healy (don’t worry, this is a hypothetical team) would be better. In other words, ESPN Sunday Night Baseball just got a little worse with the addition of Phillips. Thanks ESPN.

According to the Twitters of Kevin Burkhardt and David Lennon, Alex Cora will be headed to the DL with a torn ligament in his thumb.  Ramon Martinez (remember him?) will be starting at SS tonight.

This is starting to become a circus.  Jose Reyes cannot possibly get back into the lineup soon enough.  These injuries are even worse-timed considering the fact that the team is playing the Dodgers in LA, and then the Red Sox in Boston.  Not good.

Ok, ok, so the guy’s only made two appearances this week, but that’s part of my point when it came to picking Sean Green as my Dog House Dweller of the week.

Through his first 7 appearances of the 2009 campaign, Green has only given up 2 runs, walking 2, but striking out 10.  Since then, in 6.2 IP, Green has surrendered 11 hits, a whopping 12 runs, all while walking 7.  His ERA for his last 7 appearances is 16.20.  This descent into mediocrity has prompted Jerry Manuel to avoid considering him in close games.

He was starting out ok, but has recently begun to crash and burn.  After the last couple of years of struggling to trust guys like Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoeneweis, fans rejoiced when Omar Minaya has finally put together a good bullpen.  No matter how good a bullpen is as a whole, there’s always that guy that, when brought into the game, makes everybody groan.

In yesterday’s win against the Pirates, which was virtually a laugher by the 9th with the Mets leading 8-2, Green managed to give up a free base before surrendering a 2-run blast.

If you’re brought into a game where your team’s leading by 6 runs in the 9th, a good tip to follow would be to throw strikes.  Once you fail to do that, you’re forced to groove a pitch.  For crashing down to earth, and struggling to get off the turf, Sean Green is my Dog House Dweller of the Week.

The Mets are only 30 games into the 2009 season and fans have already witnessed David Wright’s 500th RBI, Carlos Beltran’s 1000th RBI, Carlos Delgado’s 1500th RBI, Gary Sheffield’s 500th HR, and on Sunday both Livan Hernandez’s 150th career victory and Jose Reyes’s 300th stolen base. 

Here are some other potential 2009 milestones: 

1. David Wright is three stolen bases away from 100.

• Reyes is the all-time Met stolen base leader and David Wright is sitting at number 11 (two behind the “scandalous” Vince Coleman).

2. Jose Reyes needs 48 hits to reach 1000 for his career. David Wright is 146 away.

• Only seven players have more than 1000 hits in a Met uniform: Ed Kranepool, Cleon Jones, Edgardo Alfonzo, Mookie Wilson, Bud Harrelson and Mike Piazza. 

3. Carlos Delgado is 27 home runs away from 500. 

• Delgado would become the second Met to reach 500 home runs in a Met uniform (and the second this season). It would be impossible, however, for Delgado to break Sheffield’s current record of having all of his Met home runs be his 500th. Sheffield appears determined to hold onto that distinction (I’m just messing with the guy. I’m actually very impressed/surprised by how he is handling his limited playing time).

4. David Wright is 35 doubles away from breaking Ed Kranepool’s Met record (225). 

5. Carlos Beltran has the potential to join the most exclusive club of the year: the 300-300 club.

• If Beltran were to finish the season with at least 25 stolen bases and 37 home runs (22 and 31 more, respectively) then he will become just the seventh member of the 300-300 club (or eighth member if A-Rod beats him to it (*insert unnecessarily vicious A-Rod joke here)). 
• Though this would require Beltran to hit more home runs than his career average (which is especially unlikely given the contours of Citi Field), there is a chance that Beltran will reach this relatively special milestone in 2009. 
• The other members of the 300-300 club are Barry Bonds (joined at age 31), Willie Mays (37), Andre Dawson (36), Bobby Bonds (33), Reggie Sanders (38) and Steve Finley (41). Beltran would be joining some impressive company.
• If Beltran accomplishes the feat in 2009, he will be the second youngest player to do so and would create a “Bonds sandwich” in the record books (for youngest to reach 300-300).
• Barry Bonds is the only member of both the 400-400 club and the 500-500 club. 
• Alex Rodriguez is 17 stolen bases away from joining the 300-300 club. Alfonso Soriano needs 21 home runs and 48 stolen bases.  
• No member of the 300-300 club picked up both their 300th home run and 300th stolen base in the same season. Beltran has the chance to be the first to do so.

6. First Met no-hitter of all time

• Pretty please? 

Tidbits about Sunday’s accomplishments:

• Livan Hernandez is the only active player under the age of 35** (see endnote below) to have accumulated 150 wins (Though Tim Hudson needs four wins and Kevin Millwood is five away). Additionally, he is 9th on the active wins list (which includes both Tom Glavine and Pedro Martinez who are yet to pitch in 2009). When you consider the fact that Livan has a World Series MVP to go along with those 150 wins, him being the Mets’ fifth starter is quite comforting (especially considering the Mets’ recent history with fifth starters: Jose Lima anyone?).
• Reyes is number 152 on the all time stolen base list. Rickey Henderson has the most career stolen bases with his freakish 1406 stolen bases. Lou Brock is second on the list with 938 stolen bases. It is impossible to predict if Reyes will approach these numbers because we have no idea how Reyes will age and if his game will change as his career progresses. I can tell you right now he is not going to come close to Rickey’s total but if you want to start counting, he has 1106 to go. So if Reyes were to play 15 more seasons, he would need to average 73.7 stolen bases a year. For what it’s worth, Reyes already has more career triples (73) than Henderson (66). 
• Like Cy Young and his losses, Henderson also holds the record for the most times caught stealing. Carlos Beltran has the highest stolen base percentage of all-time (for those with at least 300 attempts). 
• Reyes is number eight on the list of active career stolen bases. He does not have the highest total among current Mets, however, as Luis Castillo is number four on the list with 346. 
• Carl Crawford is the only other active player with more than 300 stolen bases to be under the age of 30. Crawford is 27 (and recently tied the modern record by stealing six bases in a game!). Juan Pierre (31), Omar Vizquel (42), Castillo (33), Johnny Damon (35), Bobby Abreu(35) and Ichiro (35) round out the rest of the top eight.

**There is some debate as to whether Livan Hernandez is actually under 35. I’ll go with what the books tell me.

While all of these milestones are nice, the Mets would undoubtedly give them all up for the ultimate milestone: Number Three.

For what it’s worth, it is interesting to look at some of the Mets SPs BABIPs and other stats early in the season.  If you’re not familiar with BABIP (Batting Average on Balls put In Play), check out the Wikipedia article, which has a simple explanation. 

Essentially, the idea is that a pitcher’s BABIP remains relatively consistent, so if they have a particularly low BABIP, it is a sign that they have been lucky and the success has been exaggerated or fluky.  Similarly, if a pitcher has a BABIP significantly above their career totals or normal levels in general, they have likely been unlucky and will likely improve from where they are then.  Naturally this is all just a rule of thumb and clearly doesn’t always hold true, but it can be a fairly accurate predictor nonetheless.   

Now, before I continue, let me establish this lemma to place the Mets starters in a larger context.  The Mets SPs have the fifth most walks in baseball, 77, but three of the four teams that have walked more players have played more games.  At least through walks, the Mets have put an extraordinary number of players on base – thus if more hits were to start dropping then the Mets would be in loads of trouble.  

Although we are merely in May, let’s take a look at the Mets rotation, and how each pitcher’s outlook appears through the interesting, yet limited scope of BABIP. 

Johan Santana has a BABIP this year of .247, below his career average of .276.  It should come as no surprise, however, that some regression should come from Santana – I can’t imagine many people expect him to retain the 0.91 ERA. 

Mike Pelfrey is not as easy to diagnose.  His BABIP of .297 this year is below his career total of .315 and last year’s number of .307.  So, despite his 5.46 ERA, has Big Pelf been lucky? Not so fast, in fact it’s quite tough to tell.  All of Pelfrey’s numbers are out of whack so far this year, so he is particularly difficult to judge.  Pelfrey has only struck out six guys in 28 innings this year, for a putrid 1.9 K/9, while at the same time he’s walked 14 men. 

Those miserable peripherals indicate that he deserves his 5.46 ERA – but why are those peripherals so bad?  Well, according to Fan Graphs, Pelfrey’s fastball is .8 MPH slower than last year while his second fastest pitch, his slider, is down .4MPH – neither of which are major drop offs, but they are dips nonetheless.  The major change is with his two off speed pitches, the curveball and changeup.  His curveball has been 2.4 MPH faster than last year while the change up is 1.8 MPH.  That, in addition to the fastball and slider drop off, makes for a much less significant speed deferential and a much more hittable pitcher.  So, unless Pelfrey can fix this, he’ll remain extremely prone to contact and will fail to K guys. 

Oliver Perez has had an abnormally high BABIP, but similar to Pelfrey, he has been a victim of his own speed problems.  Beyond the 21 walks in just as many innings, Perez has seen a significant decrease in has fastball speed from last season, 2 MPH, while his changeup has been 4.6 MPH faster. Is it the knee problem? Complacency after getting a nice contract?  I’m sure we’ll get a chance to see later this season.   

John Maine has had an extremely low BABIP of .222, compared to his career total of .269.  Yet, Maine has walked 20 guys in 33.2 innings.  Once more hits start to fall against Maine, he could be in trouble – he needs to find the strike zone or more runs will cross home.   

Ultimately, if the Mets pitchers want to succeed throughout this year they need to cut down on their walks.  Especially with Maine, who has the most noticeably low BABIP, more hits are likely to fall so the walks are going to come back to bite them more than they have.  Pelfrey as well has walked too many men, but perhaps he turned a corner by only walking one guy in his last start.  Yet, he will not be able to find much success if he continues to strike so few guys out.  In case you’re curious, he has not struck out a guy in his previous two starts.  He only went K-less twice all of last year.

Despite this nice winning streak, the Mets pitchers still have a lot to work on. 

If you’d like to read some more about BABIP and an interesting correlation, read this old yet still relevant Hardball Times article.

While it is exciting that the Mets are starting to hit with vigor, authority and a killer instinct (as well as many conveniently placed bloops and dribbles), the real story of the current six game winning streak is pitching.

Met Starters:

During this six game win streak, Met starters have pitched 38.1 innings, giving up 30 hits and 10 earned runs. That is a 2.33 ERA. Every start was a quality start (at least six innings and less than or equal to three earned runs) and the first two games were against a very scary Philadelphia Phillies lineup. The starters have averaged around 6.1 IP, 1.7 ER and 96.5 pitches per start. 

During the streak, Maine has pitched twice and Johan Santana, Livan Hernandez, Jon Niese and Mike Pelfrey started one game apiece. The bottom line is that the Met rotation (sans Ollie) has put the team in a great position to win every day.  

Tidbit: As the Met current rotation stands, the second through fifth starters are making under $6 million combined (Oliver Perez is making $12 million alone).

Met Bullpen: 

In each of the six games, the Met bullpen took the ball after quality starts and answered the call. In 15.2 innings pitched, Met relief pitching has given up just two earned runs while striking out 12. The bullpen ERA is 1.15 (Team ERA is 2.00). Both of the earned runs were given up by J.J. Putz. 

Also, it appears Ken Takahashi is super-human.

Here’s today’s lineup:

1. SS Jose Reyes
2. 2B Luis Castillo
3. CF Carlos Beltran
4. 1B Carlos Delgado
5. 3B David Wright
6. RF Gary Sheffield
7. LF Fernando Tatis
8. C Ramon Castro
9. RHP John Maine (2-2, 5.20 ERA)
10. Manager: Sandy Alomar Sr.

NOTES:

• LHP Pat Maholm is 3-0 with a 2.97 ERA. He has faced the Brewers twice, the Braves, Marlins and Reds. Those are not easy lineups. He pitched 7 shutout innings against the Braves. In 32 career innings against the Mets, Maholm is 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA. Only three Mets have hit over .250 against Maholm in their career: Jose Reyes (5-13), Ramon Castro (2-6) and Livan Hernandez (1-2).
• Following Omir Santos’s stretch of consecutive starts in late April, Ramon Castro is 9-20 with one home run and four RBI’s. 
• Since coming back from his sore hip, Carlos Delgado is 8-17 with a home run and seven RBI’s (Note: Before last night he was 5-13 with two RBI’s).
• Jerry Manuel will miss out on today’s game as he has been suspended by the league for bumping Umpire Bill Welke on Thursday after Shane Victorino leaned into Jose Reyes to force an obstruction call. Manuel was also fined an undisclosed amount. While the argument was justified, Manuel lost control of his head (literally) and his brim hit Welke. 

Fernando Martinez played a pivotal role in last night’s 4-1 Buffalo Bison victory against the *ahem* Norfolk Tides. The 20 year old Martinez doubled in a run in the first inning and singled in the go-ahead run in the 8th inning, breaking a 1-1 tie. 

Martinez is 30-100 (.300) with 3 HR’s, 16 RBI’s, 12 doubles, 2 triples and 55 total bases. Martinez leads the International League in doubles and extra base hits (17). He is 12th in the league in slugging percentage (Six of the top 11 have big league experience). His OBP is only .349 and he has struck out 21 times but these numbers are still quite good for a 20 year old playing Triple-A ball. 

Also, Martinez has been hot lately. In May (8 games), Martinez is 13-27 (.481) with 2 HR’s and 8 RBI’s. In that span, Martinez has struck out just twice. It appears that Martinez’s spring elbow issues are not negatively affecting his hitting performance (And if it is affecting his performance: Wow).

Because of the elbow strain, Martinez did not play in the field until April 17th (He DH’ed exclusively early on). Since then, Martinez has been playing in both right and left field. 

If you take into account the fact that Martinez did not resume throwing until March 27th after he was shut down on February 6th with a strained elbow, his overall performance is very encouraging. The “Teenage Hitting Machine” is off to a great start (Note: Fernando Martinez needs a new nickname. He is 20 and F-Mart is a little boring/lazy). 

Before we all get overexcited and impulsive, it is important to remember that Martinez is yet to play more than 90 professional games in a season. There is absolutely no need to rush him as the Mets have six very capable outfielders and Martinez is still just 20. But it is comforting to know that he’s up in Buffalo hitting the cover off the ball. If Martinez stays healthy and continues to be productive, I see no reason why he should not be a Met regular in 2010. Also, it could be nice to have his bat off the bench in September (and potentially October).

After that quick look into the future, it is time to enjoy the present: The “current” Mets have won 5 straight games and are a half game out of first place. Game on.

Here is tonight’s lineup against the Pirates:

1. SS Jose Reyes
2. 2B Luis Castillo
3. CF Carlos Beltran
4. 1B Carlos Delgado
5. 3B David Wright
6. LF Daniel Murphy
7. C Omir Santos
8. RF Ryan Church
9. LHP Jon Niese (Season Debut)

NOTES:

• I wouldn’t read too much into Church’s hitting in the 8 hole. Manuel likely wants Castillo hitting second and felt the need to split up the lefties at the bottom of the order (Murphy and Church). 
• Jon Niese will be making his season debut against former Yankee prospect RHP Jeff Karstens (1-1, 5.85 ERA). Last season, Niese started three September games for the Mets. He pitched 8 shutout innings against the Braves in his second start. Niese also had 7 strikeouts in that game. In his other two starts, Niese pitched six combined innings giving up 11 earned runs and 6 walks against the Brewers and Cubs.
• Carlos Beltran is 2-3 against Karstens with a home run.
• Don’t look now but David Wright is hitting .314. In his last six games, he is 9-20 with 2 home runs, 7 RBI’s and 18 total bases. More telling, Wright has struck out 3 times in those six games. Before these six games, Wright had 27 strikeouts in 21 games. Good signs all around. (Note: All six games have been against the Phillies and Braves). 

Below is a proposed 25 man roster of all former Mets that are currently active. Here are the rules: Players must have at least one at bat or game pitched in 2009. This includes the World Baseball Classic. Therefore, Jeff Kent, Jay Payton Paul Lo Duca and Damion Easley are all ineligible even though they could potentially contribute to this fictional team. Pedro Martinez, however, may be included in the starting rotation (if he makes the cut). Also, players who have been on the DL all season, such as Chad Bradford, Tom Glavine and Cliff Floyd are eligible but are not likely to make the team because the fictitious roster is about who can contribute now. Luckily, this team is nowhere near as good as the real 2009 New York Mets.

Starting Lineup: 

1. CF Carlos Gomez:  He is the only guy with SB potential of the potential starters. Mike Cameron and Endy Chavez will also receive starts in this spot. (Johan Santana trade)
2. SS Marco Scutaro (Claimed off waivers by the A’s in 2003)
3. 3B Melvin Mora (Traded by the Mets to the Orioles for Mike Bordick. The trade was the result of a Rey Ordonez injury even though Mora was filling in for Ordonez admirably. The Mets were worried about Mora’s defense at SS.)
4. LF Jason Bay (Traded to the Padres in a deadline deal as part of a package for relief pitcher Steve Reed on July 31, 2002).
5. 1B Mike Jacobs (Traded to the Marlins as part of the Carlos Delgado deal).
6. RF Xavier Nady: Mike Cameron would get a lot of these starts. (Traded to the Pirates for Roberto Hernandez and Oliver Perez).
7. 2B Ty Wigginton (Traded to the Pirates as part of the Kris Benson deal).
8. C Jesus* Flores (A Rule V Mistake)

Bench: 

1. C Mike Difelice: Even though he retired in mid-April, he qualifies and this team needs a backup catcher. There aren’t too many good former Met catchers out there who have played in 2009.
2. IF Miguel Cairo (Signed by the Yankees)
3. 2B Jeff Keppinger (Traded for Ruben Gotay)
4. OF Endy Chavez (J.J. Putz/Sean Green deal)
5. OF Mike Cameron (Traded for Xavier Nady)
6. 1B Doug Mientkiewicz (Signed by the Royals)
7. AAA: OF Lastings Milledge (Traded to the Nationals for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider). Milledge is currently playing for the Nationals in Triple-A but played in the big leagues earlier in the year. Milledge will start in AAA for this team but will likely be up in the bigs soon (For Cairo or Mientkiewicz). Note: There is a “Vote LMillz” campaign to get Milledge on the All-Star team (He is on the ballot) so that the Nationals’ only representative would be a AAA player. Why are people trying to torture the poor Natinal fans?

Starting Rotation:

1. LHP Scott Kazmir (Victor Zambrano. You all know the story).
2. RHP AJ Burnett (Traded to the Marlins for Al Leiter in 1998).
3. RHP Brian Bannister (Traded to the Royals for Ambiriox Burgos).
4. RHP Braden Looper (Signed by the Cardinals).
5. RHP Kris Benson (Traded to the Orioles for John Maine and Jorge Julio). Benson is currently making a comeback with the Rangers. I will give him this spot over Pedro because he is “pitching.”

Potential spot starters:

1. In honor of his duel with Santana, Chan Ho Park is a spot starter.
2. RHP Pedro Martinez (Unsigned, played in the World Baseball Classic). He probably shouldn’t be on this roster as his only 2009 experience is against Amsterdam but if one of the starters goes down, I would consider picking him up (for this roster, not the Mets).
3. LHP Tom Glavine: When Glavine gets off the DL, he will probably take Benson’s spot in this rotation.
4. Honorary DL Slot: LHP Mike Hampton (Signed 8 year, $120 million contract to take advantage of the school systems and warm weather in Colorado).

Bullpen:

The bullpen is difficult to put together because relievers come and go so often. But here are the six that make the roster followed by the guys on the outside looking in (Note: I tried to put guys from the 2008 Bullpen on the outside looking in):

1. Long Man: LHP Darren Oliver
2. RHP Dan Wheeler (Traded to the Astros for Adam Seuss (as in Dr.?) in August, 2004). Seuss had 7 Single-A at bats for the Mets before heading back to the Astros. Wheeler has pitched in 20 postseason games since being traded.
3. RHP Octavio Dotel (Traded with Roger Cedeno for Mike Hampton in 1999).
4. Set Up: RHP Matt Lindstrom (Traded with Henry Owens for Jason Vargas and Adam Bostick).
5. Set Up: RHP Dave Weathers (Traded for Richard Hidalgo in 2004).
6. Closer: RHP Heath Bell (Traded to the Padres with Royce Ring for Ben Johnson and Jon Adkins).

Outside Looking In:

1. RHP Chad Bradford: Only because he is recovering from elbow surgery.
2. RHP Joe Smith
3. RHP Luis Ayala
4. RHP Aaron Heilman: Maybe someday he will make this team but it’s too soon. It’s just too soon.
5. RHP Darren O’Day: I was very close to putting him on this roster. He has 1.04 ERA this season and has been pitching well for the Rangers since leaving the Mets.
6. LHP Scott Schoeneweis: He’s pitching well for the Diamondbacks.
7. RHP Duaner Sanchez: He has not been pitching well for the Padres
8. I am sure there are plenty of other relievers I am forgetting.

Manager: Bobby Valentine (I had to).

So that’s the roster. Isn’t it a little scary how many of the best players on this roster were traded in deadline deals? Feel free to disagree or let me know if I am missing someone.

*Thank you gwong for pointing out my Jesus Flores/Wilmer Flores mistake. Wilmer Flores is still very much in the Met organization (For more information on Wilmer Flores, see this March article from the New York Times). Jesus Flores is catching for the Nationals.

With all of the hubbub surrounding Santana’s start to the season, I thought I’d look at the progress of the four players who were traded for the ace. Obviously it doesn’t really matter who Omar traded but it is always nice to track the progress of former Met prospects. Omar probably could have thrown in Fernando Martinez and Jon Niese on top of these four and fans would be hard pressed to complain. You get my point. Nonetheless, here are the four men who will forever be linked to the trade (which is unfair to them):

1. Carlos Gomez

Gomez had a good year last season playing everyday in centerfield for the Twins.  Gomez made some great plays on defense and hit .258 with 7 home runs, 59 RBI’s, 7 triples and 33 stolen bases. Gomez has struggled this year and had been splitting time with Delmon Young before missing some time for the birth of his first child. So far, in 49 at bats, Gomez is hitting .224 with 0 home runs, 1 RBI, a triple and 2 stolen bases. Gomez looks like he will be a very good Major League ballplayer. He is still just 23 and put together a decent full season at 22. I always liked Gomez and I hope (and think) he will have a great career.

2. Philip Humber

Philip Humber was the Mets’ first round pick in 2006 (third overall).  Humber had Tommy John surgery in 2005 while with Binghamton (and we all remember his start in late 2007).

Last year, Humber spent the majority of the season with the Twins’ AAA affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings. He pitched in 31 games (23 starts) to a 10-8 record and a 4.56 ERA. He pitched in 5 games (11.2 innings, no starts) for the Twins to a 4.63 ERA.

Humber, now 26, started the year in the Twins bullpen. He pitched in 4 games (4.1 IP) to a 12.46 ERA. He pitched two scoreless innings before giving up 3 earned runs in two consecutive appearances. On April 21st, Humber cleared waivers and was sent back to Rochester. Humber is 1-1 with a 5.06 ERA (3 games, 2 starts) since returning to Rochester.

3. Kevin Mulvey

The 23 year old Mulvey is yet to make it to the big leagues but it shouldn’t be too long before he is in the big league rotation. Last year at AAA Rochester, Mulvey made 27 starts accumulating a 7-9 record with a 3.77 ERA. This year, Mulvey is 1-1 with a 2.96 ERA in 5 starts. Before the year is over, Mulvey will likely be starting for the Twins.

4. Deolis Guerra

Guerra, still just 20 years old, has been pitching for a Twins’ Advanced A League affiliate, the Fort Myers Miracle. The Miracle play in the Florida State League along with the St. Lucie Mets.

In 2008, Guerra started 25 games and had an 11-9 record with a 5.47 ERA. This year, Guerra is 2-2 with a 5.40 ERA (6 games, 5 starts). Again, Guerra is just 20 and was considered the best pitching prospect sent to the Twins. He is still very rough. One scout compared him to a “less funky” Bronson Arroyo?

As was widely reported yesterday, Manny Ramirez has become the latest name linked to performance enhancing drugs.

While this isn’t earth-shattering news, it does bring baseball fans at large closer to throwing their hands up and wondering “Who hasn’t cheated?”

Michael O’Keeffe with the Daily News points out that Manny is just the latest of a growing number of offenders who are represented by Scott Boras.  The list includes former Met Scott Schoeneweis and the total of Boras clients linked to performance enhancing drugs is now up to 10.

I first heard this nugget brought up on WFAN yesterday by midday host Evan Roberts, and to me the whole thing looks pretty bad.  We’re talking about Scott Boras here, who’s already the least popular figure in baseball.  The fact that some people are starting to think this isn’t a coincidence might be a little too “conspiracy theory” for me, but perception’s reality.  The only problem I have with this, though, is that Boras client or not, can the public really assume any big star power hitter’s innocence anymore? At this point, all I ask when I hear about a story like this is “who’s next?”

I also heard Roberts express some concern over whether any current “Boras Mets” might be suspicious, Carlos Beltran chief among them, although he wouldn’t name names specifically.  The thing is, there’s no real point in wasting energy worrying about whether slugger A or ace B is a PED user anymore.  So many legacies have become tainted already that nothing should be surprising.  Nobody’s really safe from suspicion.  If you ask me, why worry that another shoe will drop when we all know it’s just a matter of time?

Notable Mets who are Scott Boras clients include Beltran, Oliver Perez, and Mike Pelfrey.

So what do you guys think.  Should we worry about whether any current Mets are using or have used in the past?  Or have so many guys done it throughout baseball that the shock value’s completely gone?  Also, should Boras be investigated, or is the fact that he represents so many players to begin with the reason he’d be likely to be linked to more PED users?