The rumors of Raul Ibanez coming to Queens continue to abound. Let’s get one thing crystal clear: = For those who are more literary than visionary, Raul Ibanez is Shawn Green. In other words, a guy who once was a strong all-around player with a slugging lefthanded bat, who has declined drastically in all phases … Read more
So the Phillies have accomplished the impossible, addressing their most glaring need by picking up Joe Blanton from the Athletics for a package of prospects / suspects. The Phillies gave up no one from their 25-man roster, with all three players among their “top 20 prospects” according to Baseball America. However, that’s not saying much … Read more
So the news before the All-Star Break was that Moises Alou was finished for the year, having torn his hamstring in a rehab game the night before. There had been suggestions that Alou did not need to rush back, that the Mets would be fine with Alou returning some time after the All-Star break, but … Read more
Where is Trot Nixon? Or as my wife quipped, “why are they not trotting out Trot?” Another observation: why in the world is Luis Aguayo on the coaching staff? Further, why is he — and not Ken Oberkfell — the third base coach? And as MetsToday loyal reader Julie asked, “how did Sandy Alomar get … Read more
Last week, in a John Delcos article on Ryan Church, the Mets’ MVP credited hitting coach Howard Johnson with his early season success. From the article: Church credits his hot start to working daily with hitting instructor Howard Johnson. “Howard and I are always talking,” Church said. “He’s a great sounding board.” Johnson has Church … Read more
The Mets are fourth in the NL in walks with 187 — though, there are several teams within four or five free passes, so you could say they’re middle of the pack. Those 187 walks translate to an average of close to 4 bases on balls per game (3.8, to be exact). In May, however, … Read more
So … Moises Alou is placed on the 15-day DL after a stiff wind strained his calf. And the man to replace him on the 25-man roster is … Raul Casanova? Huh? I suppose this means Willie Randolph will consider using Ramon Castro as a pinch-hitter, but otherwise this is a real head-scratcher. Why in … Read more
While few of us expected Moises Alou to play in more than 100 games this season, we did hope to see him at some point beyond the cameo appearances in spring training. After suffering a hernia, the latest news is that Alou may or may not have a fractured bone in his ankle. This does … Read more
