For a while, it was questionable whether Ronny Paulino would ever get going in a Mets uniform, and what kind of contribution he’d make. Visa issues kept him out of Port St. Lucie until Mid-March, and when he finally arrived, manager Terry Collins announced he’d be Josh Thole‘s backup. Not long after he arrived in spring training, Paulino was diagnosed with anemia, further setting him back — and then there was the remainder of his PEDs suspension to serve.

Despite these multiple issues that prevented Paulino from properly preparing for the 2011 season, things turned out OK.

Braves 6 Mets 5

The final score states that this was a one-run game, but it didn’t feel that way.

With the trading deadline less than three days away, and Carlos Beltran off to San Francisco, one has to believe that the Mets are still wheeling and dealing — despite the public poker face displayed by Sandy Alderson. So what other Mets could be on the block?

Going by the regular order of the Mets’ 5-man starting rotation, it will be knuckleballer R.A. Dickey’s turn to take the mound for Sunday’s ballgame against the Dodgers. Generally speaking, Josh Thole has been R.A.’s unofficial personal catcher — so the battery would tentatively be Dickey and Thole. However, there is some discussion that could change before tomorrow.

Mets 2 Phillies 1

United States Special Forces, executing a CIA operation, shot Osama Bin Laden and took possession of his dead body. Though this doesn’t signify the end of terrorism nor the defeat of Al-Qaeda, it is a welcome turn of events and a symbol of victory for many of us.

In other news, the Mets and Phillies engaged in comparatively meaningless ballgame.

According to the Mets PR Department, Ronny Paulino has been promoted from AAA Buffalo and activated from the disabled list. Paulino is available to play in tonight’s ballgame against the Phillies. He will wear uniform #9.

To make room on the roster for Paulino, catcher Mike Nickeas has been demoted to Buffalo.

I’m kind of sad to see Nickeas go down. I know Joe didn’t love his form behind the plate but he seemed to do a great job of working with the pitchers and calling games. One has to wonder, for example, if Chris Capuano might have pitched better last night if Nickeas was catching instead of Josh Thole.

Toward that same end, it’s going to take Paulino a while to build a rapport with the Mets pitching staff. I’m sure Joe will comment on that in more detail in a future post. Otherwise, I’m anxious to see what Paulino can do with the bat against lefties.

In case you missed it in yesterday’s post-game notes, D.J. Carrasco has been sent down to AAA Buffalo. This means that

According to Sandy Alderson, Jason Bay is unlikely to return to the Mets before April 26th.

This news completely conflicts with manager Terry Collins’ suggestion earlier this week that Bay would return this weekend “in a perfect world”.

Well, in a “perfect world”, the Mets wouldn’t be languishing in last place, either.

I’m not sure what prompted Collins to make that comment — even if it was empty and ambiguous — but it sure smells similar to the disconnect between the front office and field manager of the previous regime.

Am I picking a fight here? Maybe. But there isn’t much else to talk about right now without bringing up the fact that the Mets stink have been disappointing of late. So perhaps I’m trying to divert the attention away from the on-field ineptitude.

In related news, Ronny Paulino is expected to return around the same date — which is in line with his status on the 15-day disabled list as of April 10th. Per Alderson: