Mets Daily Notes

[DravenX]

News from the 12th of August.

Paul Lo Duca is expected to go on the disabled list Sunday after aggravating his hamstring injury during Saturday's game.
Lo Duca's injury is rather likely to help the Mets, as Ramon Castro will take over and get almost all of the starts behind the plate. Mike DiFelice will be called up to serve as a backup.

Mets purchased the contract of catcher Mike DiFelice from Triple-A New Orleans.
DiFelice will back up Ramon Castro with Paul Lo Duca out for the next 15 days.

Mets placed catcher Paul Lo Duca on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right hamstring.
Lo Duca didn't want to go on the disabled list, but the Mets want to get him back at 100 percent. Ramon Castro will take over the starting job for the next couple of weeks and will likely remain a clear upgrade over Lo Duca offensively.

Ramon Castro left Sunday's game versus the Marlins because of a sore back.
Talk about a case of bad timing. With Paul Lo Duca on the DL, Mike Difelice replaced him. Castro is considered day-to-day.

Oliver Perez surrendered four runs in five innings against the Marlins on Sunday but wasn't involved in the decision of a 10-4 Mets' victory.
Perez gave up six hits and walked four, continuing a trend of mediocre performances from the left-hander. Perez has seen his ERA rise from 2.98 to 3.46 over his last three outings, though he did strike out 11 batters in the first appearance. It's probably a trend he'll be able to reverse, but we'd expect an ERA closer to where it is now than where it was previously. He'll probably have better luck against the Nationals later in the week.

Moises Alou clubbed a pair of homers to drive in four runs as the Mets topped the Marlins 10-4 on Sunday.
Alou hit a three-run homer off starter Rick Vanden Hurk in the second, then added a solo shot off reliever Lee Gardner in the sixth. Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado also homered as the Mets broke out of a three-game losing streak. For Alou it was his fourth and fifth homers this month, so it looks like he's fully recovered from the quad injury that bothered him earlier in the season.

Ramon Castro is listed as day-do-day with a strained lower back.
Castro was likely hurt during a play at the plate in Sunday's game against the Marlins. The Mets will hope to have him ready to go on Tuesday.

[DravenX]

News from the 14th of August.

Pedro Martinez (shoulder) will make his second rehab start with with the Gulf Coast League Mets on Tuesday.
Martinez will look to improve on his first outing when he gave up five earned runs in three innings, throwing 63 pitches.

Marlin Anderson is expected to return from the bereavement list in time for Tuesday's game.
David Newhan will likely be optioned to Triple-A New Orleans to create room on the roster for Anderson.

Pedro Martinez gave up three runs over four innings for the Rookie GCL Mets in his second rehab start Tuesday.
Martinez was perfect for three innings before struggling in the fourth, making this something of a step forward. "I like this outing a lot more than the other one," he said. "I am more in command, and I actually felt like I pitched a little bit, making pitches where I wanted to, and overall it was a jump ahead. It was a great improvement." Martinez figures to make his next start.

The Mets have had Carlos Beltran and David Wright swap spots in Tuesday's lineup, with Beltran going from third to fourth.
Wright has 60 points of OBP on Beltran, so maybe this will help a bit. It's not going to have much of an impact in fantasy leagues.

Mets optioned infielder-outfielder David Newhan to Triple-A New Orleans.
Newman has hit .203/.295/.290 in 69 at-bats for the Mets this season.

Mets activated outfielder Marlon Anderson from the bereavement list.
Anderson went on the bereavement list Friday to attend his grandmother's funeral.

Carlos Beltran, switched to cleanup for Tuesday's game, came through with two runs and two RBI.
He smacked his 21st homer, a solo job, doubled and scored and also drove in a second run on a fielder's choice. For one night, anyways, Beltran came through as the cleanup man, lifting his BA to .261 in the process.

Moises Alou stroked a tie-breaking, two-run single in the top of the eighth as the Mets edged the Pirates 5-4 on Tuesday.
It was Alou's only hit of the night, but he picked a great time to come through, continuing his recent run of productivity. He's hit safely in six straight to raise his average to .310 and he's driven in six runs in the last two games. In 46 games, Alou has 25 RBI and assuming he remains healthy (always a big if), he looks poised to enjoy a big finish to the season.

[DravenX]

News from the 15th of August.

Duaner Sanchez (shoulder surgery) has resumed throwing at Port St. Lucie, but according to Mets VP Tony Bernazard it is unlikely he will pitch for the Mets this season.
Sanchez is attempting to recover from a hairline fracture of the coracoid bone in his right shoulder. He should be close to 100 percent for spring training.

Pedro Martinez (shoulder) is lobbying to rejoin the Mets after just one more rehab start.
"I need to pitch in the big leagues," Martinez said. "I feel like my pitches are improving, but I can't tell you how good I am until I get a big-league hitter out. I am already pushing the issue, but it's going to take me a little while still." The Mets will likely stick with their schedule and have Pedro make at least two more starts before coming off the disabled list.

Carlos Delgado left Wednesday's game in the eighth inning with a left leg contusion.
Lastings Milledge replaced him, with Shawn Green moving from right field to first base. Delgado is day-to-day.

Moises Alou had three hits and drove in three runs to help the Mets hang on for a wild 10-8 win in Pittsburgh on Wednesday.
The Mets led 5-4 after eight before exploding for five runs in the top of the ninth. Aaron Sele then proceeded to allow the Pirates to score -- you guessed it -- four runs in the bottom of the ninth, before Billy Wagner put out the fire. Alou, who has been mashing of late, smoked a two-run homer to cap a five-run first and then added an RBI single to cap the ninth-inning uprising. He even swiped a base as well. David Wright also enjoyed a big night, going 2-for-4 with two runs and two ribbies.

[DravenX]

News from the 16th of August.

Endy Chavez, who has been on the disabled list since June 7 due to a hamstring strain, will begin a rehab assignment with St. Lucie of the GCL on Thursday.
Chavez will likely need at least a week of rehab games to get his timing back. He could rejoin the Mets late next week.

Pedro Martinez's next rehab start is scheduled for Monday with Single-A St. Lucie.
Martinez will need at least another rehab start after Monday before the Mets will consider activating him from the disabled list.

Lastings Milledge was scratched from Thursday's lineup with flu-like symptoms.
Milledge was to play right field with Shawn Green filling in at first base for Carlos Delgado. Marlon Anderson is now starting in right.

The Puerto Rican Winter League on Thursday announced that it was canceling its upcoming season because of financial problems.
It's been well known for years that the league was struggling, and it had been increasingly difficult to get stats from the once-popular circuit, which was set to enter in 70th year. The league could be brought back in the future, perhaps with some help from MLB. In the meantime, it seems likely that the Dominican, Venezuelan and Mexican Leagues will get stronger this winter. Among the players who typically played in Puerto Rico were Alex Rios, Yadier Molina and Jose Valentin, who owned one of the teams.

Carlos Beltran went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer and a double in Thursday's loss.
With two homers, three doubles and six RBI in three games, Beltran is enjoying the cleanup spot so far. Then again, it probably has more to do with the opportunity to face Pirates pitching than anything else.

Guillermo Mota gave up two runs in an inning of relief Thursday, pushing his ERA up to 5.80.
We can't say we're sad to see Mota struggling as he returns from his steroids suspension. The Mets need to stop using him in close games, as he's given up six runs over his last three appearances.

Ramon Castro could be ready to go Friday after missing a third straight game Thursday with a sore back.
Mike DiFelice has been filling in behind the plate.

[redsrbetter]

I had to ride the hot hand tonight. I put a little cha ching on this one. Lets go Mets!

[ljshorty89]

Looks like you won some cha ching! 9 game winning streak going into the break! Yeah Baby!

[redsrbetter]

Sweet! Bank!

Thank you Mets! Thank you Carlos Beltran and Mike Pelfrey!

[ljshorty89]

You should thank Carlos Delgado too!

[ljshorty89]

This is just stuff that I heard over the course of the day, I don't have sources though.

Ryan Church has been receiving new treatment for his migraines, and is said to be feeling much better.

Angel Pagan avoided surgery and may be back within a couple weeks after the All Star break.

Orlando Hernandez made his second start, and was decent. I won't expect him back until he is on the mound. however.

[ljshorty89]

Church began rehabbing on Saturday, and may be back within 3 weeks, if not sooner.

Pagan ended up having the surgery, and is out for the year.

El Duque fell off the face of the earth again.

[Lets Go Rays]

Johan Santana threw seven innings and held the Nationals to one run in a victory Friday.
Score another point for Santana after his pitching coach said earlier this month that he wouldn't be ready for Opening Day. Santana struck out six and walked none tonight.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Daniel Murphy went 3-for-4 with two RBI as the Mets' No. 7 hitter on Friday.
Murphy has been named the Mets' No. 2 hitter, but he's been used lower in the order each of the last three days. Odds are that he'll be dropped in the lineup against left-handed pitchers, with Luis Castillo replacing him in the two hole.

[Lets Go Rays]

Mets released LHP Ron Villone and LHP Valerio De Los Santos.
Villone wasn't interested in accepting a minor league assignment, so he'll try to catch on with another team. Since he gave up six runs in five innings this spring, it seems pretty unlikely that he'll open the season in the majors.

[ljshorty89]

Twitter / Bart Hubbuch: The #Mets released outfiel ...

Mets release Emil Brown. Ok. I'm not sure why we got him in the first place, but now he's a FA.

[ljshorty89]

Full Count » Lugo a Met? Not Just Yet…

Mets won't necessarily sign Lugo. Sounds like they are still relative favorites, but I guess it's not as much of a guarantee. This is probably because the plan was to release Tim Redding, but now with Nieve on the DL, Redding becomes somewhat more important(even though he's terrible).

[ljshorty89]

John Maine tossed a 65-pitch, three-inning simulated game Tuesday in Port St. Lucie. He faced Carlos Delgado and Jose Reyes and indicated he felt good. The next step could be a minor-league rehab game.

So, Delgado and Reyes are both able to hit live pitching, and both seem to be progressing well in their rehab. Maine is at 65 pitches in a simulated game. Perhaps they could all be back within a couple weeks, which would be a major boost for this team.