In grapefruit league action yesterday, 18-year-old shortstop Ruben “don’t call me Miguel” Tejada blasted a double in the gap to score Michel Abreu with the winning run in the tenth inning to beat the Braves 3-2. Ramon Castro had two hits including a standup triple. Had Jose Reyes hit the ball, he might have rounded … Read more
There are two Mets spring training invites who happen to be former NYC high school stars — and with a little luck, one of them might make the big club come April. If you were paying attention to — or playing — high school baseball 10-15 years ago, then you may already know the names … Read more
One of the things pitchers do in spring training is pitch to “the strings”. Considering today’s technology, it may appear to be a rather primitive setup — all it is, after all, is a special bullpen set up with pairs of wooden posts driven into the ground, and a string attached in between. The key … Read more
According to Adam Rubin, the Mets are shopping Scott Schoeneweis and Jorge Sosa, hoping to clear some payroll as well as room on the roster for some of their young guns. Personally, I wouldn’t mind seeing either of them go, if not both. Sosa is a streaky pitcher who relies exclusively on a slider — … Read more
One of the “big” moves immediately prior to spring training (this one was just a tad less important than the Johan trade) was the signing of Tony Armas, Jr. to a minor league deal. He was handed a spring training invite with the idea that he’d fight for a spot in the Mets bullpen, and … Read more
Every once in a while you may hear Ron and Keith mention “PFP” during a Mets broadcast. Contrary to popular belief, “PFP” is not a drug that was popular in the Mets dugout in the 1980s; rather, it is an acronym for “Pitchers’ Fielding Practice”. PFP is simply explained as the pitcher covering first, and … Read more
I promised to get at least one shot proving that Duaner Sanchez is in fact skinny this spring, so here it is: His reported weight of around 200 lbs. is legit. Notice, though, that if beanpole Mike Pelfrey weren’t 6’7″, you wouldn’t see him standing behind Sanchez. That’s more because Pelfrey is too thin than … Read more
If you listened to my interview on Gotham Sports Radio, you already know who is my sleeper for the fifth spot in the rotation. But if you haven’t gotten around to downloading it yet (and you should, I give away some other interesting tidbits), I’ll offer you my “dark horse” candidate for the role. Jason … Read more
