According to Ken Rosenthal and Jeff Passan, Mets minor league OF Cesar Puello and IF-OF Jordany Valdespin have agreed to accept a 50-game ban for their connection to the Biogenesis clinic.

Puello had been linked to Biogenesis in the past, so his punishment is no surprise. But Valdespin was never mentioned in any previous report.

So Valdespin’s tumultuous summer just keeps getting worse.

Puello was enjoying the best season of his career this year, batting .328/.405/.550 with 16 home runs and 73 RBI for the Double-A Binghamton Mets, but now it appears his season is over. It will be interesting to see how the Mets handle him going forward.

Apparently, whatever Valdespin took didn’t kick in until he was demoted to Triple-A Las Vegas at the All-Star Break. Jordany was raking to the tune of a .466/.533/.759 slash with 3 home runs and 24 RBI in 67 plate appearances. While with the major league club, Valdespin was batting only .188.

Newsday, Matt den Dekker & Terry Collins 

Questions continue to loom over who will be starting where in the outfield, especially in centerfield. And Matt den Dekker still isn’t the answer.

Marlins 4 Mets 3

One more to go …

Rockies 1 Mets 0

Is it possible that the Mets have not yet hit rock bottom?

As mentioned in the last recap, I won’t be able to see this game live. So, please post your notes in the comments, and I’ll be doing a recap later this evening.

In the meantime, here are the lineups:

Mets
Jordany Valdespin CF
Daniel Murphy 2B
David Wright 3B
Ike Davis 1B
Scott Hairston LF
Mike Baxter RF
Ruben Tejada SS
Josh Thole C
Collin McHugh P

Rockies
Charlie Blackmon RF
Jonathan Herrera SS
Jordan Pacheco 1B
Carlos Gonzalez LF
Wilin Rosario C
Tyler Colvin CF
Chris Nelson 3B
DJ LeMahieu 2B
Tyler Chatwood P

The Mets lineup is shaken up, as you can see. I understand that Terry Collins is trying to do something different, but I’m not sure I understand positioning two of the colder hitters (Valdespin, Murphy) at the very top of the order and some of the warmer hitters (Baxter, Tejada) further down.

More significantly, I don’t understand how Collins can “reward” Valdespin with a start in center and the leadoff spot after ‘spin has lately been lackadaisical in the field, making mental errors on the bases, and disrespecting umpires. It’s as if those “little things” mean nothing to Collins — which is astounding, considering all the lip service the manager has been spouting about fundamentals, hustle, etc., etc. No wonder Valdespin has yet to mature — the Mets keep rewarding him for misbehavior.

Maybe I’m just a crusty old-schooler but that has nothing to do with the laws of cause and effect, and nor does it have anything to do with Collins’ hypocrisy.

On the bright side it will be interesting to see Collin McHugh make his MLB debut, if for no other reason than he’s new — and don’t we all love shiny new things?

Braves 4 Mets 0

What happened to the offense? What happened to the “never say die” attitude?

As previously mentioned, I’m at work and won’t be able to do a recap for this afternoon’s game until long after it’s over. That said, here are the lineups – please feel free to post your comments before / during / after the game.

Good news for the Nationals: ‘spin can’t come off the bench as a pinch-hitter today.

Mets

1. Ruben Tejada, ss
2. Jordany Valdespin, lf
3. David Wright, 3b
4. Ike Davis, 1b
5. Daniel Murphy, 2b
6. Kirk Nieuwenhuis, rf
7. Josh Thole, c
8. Andres Torres, cf
9. Jeremy Hefner, rhp

Nationals

1. Steve Lombardozzi, 2B
2. Bryce Harper, RF
3. Ryan Zimmerman, 3B
4. Adam LaRoche, 1B
5. Michael Morse, LF
6. Danny Espinosa, SS
7. Roger Bernadina, CF
8. Sandy Leon, C
9. Stephen Strasburg, SP

Nationals 5 Mets 4

Late-inning dramatics are entertaining, for sure. But if they don’t result in a win, well … what value do they have, other than entertainment?