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April 18, 2009 Bullpen Blueprint John Fitzgerald

The Darren O’Day Era is Probably Over

ODay and Morrissey, courtesy of Angels blog Halos Heaven

O'Day and Morrissey, courtesy of Angels blog Halos Heaven

Rotoworld is reporting that the Mets have designated reliever Darren O’Day for assignment. O’Day – a Rule 5 pick – will be placed on Rule 5 waivers. If he clears waivers, he will be offered back to the Angels.

O’Day’s departure will make room for Nelson Figueroa, who will start in place of Mike Pelfrey in Sunday’s series finale against Milwaukee.

I’m surprised Omar Minaya is so quick to scrap a piece of the bullpen that has been dominant so far this season. In four games with the Mets, O’Day had not allowed an earned run.

Given Pelfrey’s youth and his workload last season, I can’t imagine why they wouldn’t put him  on the DL, retroactive to his last start. He’d only end up missing one extra start and the bullpen could remain intact.

Then again, maybe the Mets weren’t high on O’Day in the first place and/or maybe they have a late inning reliever in mind to replace him once Pelfrey gets back.

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John Fitzgerald is an independent film/TV producer. In 2007, he followed former Mets 2B Wally Backman and his minor league team for the TV show, "Playing for Peanuts." Click here for DVD ordering information NOTE: $5 from each sale goes to maintenance costs of MetsToday.com
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  1. upson April 18, 2009 at 9:13 pm
    John: I agree that O’Day should have been given more time before giving up for him. However, in fairness, you cannot use his 0.00 ERA to support this argument. The fact is, his ERA lies. Out of four starts for the Mets, two were bad and one shaky. In Cincy, with 1 out, he let runners score from 1st and 2nd. In the first Florida game, with 2 outs, he let a runner score from 1st.

    Despite this, I agree that it’s too early to make the call. On the other hand, if Manuel already gave up on O’Day, the move was necessary in order to better balance the bullpen workload. The Mets cannot afford to have unused arms in the bullpen.

  2. John Fitzgerald April 19, 2009 at 3:34 am
    Upson: You’re right about the ERA. It doesn’t justify anything, but I wanted to mention his stats. It’s such a small sample size – he has no record and no ERA. That was all I was trying to get across. Sorry if it seemed like I was making the case that O’Day has been lights out. You’re right – he hasn’t been.

    I’m sure the bullpen can survive without him, but if it ain’t broke, why fix it?

  3. Steve April 19, 2009 at 7:59 am
    I’m not getting too upset that the mets are letting O’Day go…either he or stokes really had to. I just didn’t see O’Day sticking around with this team for the long term, espescially the way the bulk of the pen has been pitching. At some point you have to make room for Redding, and I don’t know if Figgy is any worse. I feel much more confident with figgy in against an good lefty than O’Day. I just don’t see a point in a ROOGY in the pen as it’s currently constructed, pretty much anybody can get righties out. I just think it’s a move that was going to happen anyway, there’s not much reason to delay the inevitable.
  4. The Nelson Figueroa Era is Probably Over : Mets Today April 19, 2009 at 8:22 pm
    […] Figueroa had a decent outing for the Mets as an emergency starter in place of the injured Mike Pelfrey. In order to make room for Figueroa, the Mets had to place reliever Darren O’Day on Rule 5 waivers. […]
  5. isuzudude April 22, 2009 at 2:28 pm
    The Rangers have claimed O’Day off waivers. Poor kid, goes from pitching at the cavernous CitiField to the homer-happy ballpark in Arlington. What’s more, he’ll have to face his former Angels mates several times this season with a heavy heart.
  6. 2009 Analysis: Darren O’Day : Mets Today October 26, 2009 at 7:32 am
    […] April 18th the Mets began an inexplicable flurry of moves that began with O’Day being placed on waivers and ultimately resulted in the promotion of Ken Takahashi. In the process they ticked off Nelson […]