According to a tweet by former GM Jim Bowden, if the Mets were able to sign Michael Bourn, it is “likely” the Mets would be able to retain their first round pick.

According to a league source if the Mets were able to sign Michael Bourn it is likely through negotiations w/union pick would be protected

— JIM BOWDEN (@JimBowdenESPNxm) February 7, 2013

Bowden is now an analyst for ESPN and SiriusXM.

If true, this would eliminate one huge roadblock between the Mets and Bourn.  The remaining roadblocks would be the length and value of the contract.  According to Bowden, who has been a veritable font of knowledge today, Bourn and his camp are looking for $14-15 million per year.  The Mets, at this point, are not willing to pay that much, nor are they willing to give him the five years he’s looking for.  They’d love a three-year deal, but might settle for four.

The Mets rounded out their bullpen by signing veteran Brandon Lyon.  Lyon is 33, and enjoyed a fine 2012 with Houston and Toronto.  Combined, he appeared in 67 games, posted a 3.10 ERA, and had the highest SO/9 ratio of his eleven-year career (9.3).

Jon Rauch won’t be joining Lyon in the ‘pen for the Mets this year, but he will remain in the NL East.

The Mets also signed OF Corey Patterson.  Remember him?  Does “15-2” and “Tom Glavine” ring a bell?

And Terry Collins is planning to start Johan Santana on Opening Day.  I’m sure a lot of that is contingent on how he pitches in the Pre-Season.

Finally, GM Sandy Alderson answered questions from fans on Twitter, and as always, Mets tweeps took it very seriously.

To paraphrase the cartoon version of Tim McCarver from an episode of “Family Guy,”  as good as the Mets were in the first half of this season, that’s how as bad as they’ve been now.

But at least Frank Viola‘s daughter Brittany did well.  Oh, right.

OK, here are the Blogs:

• Metszilla relays the news that Johan Santana will return without limits on Saturday.
• Amazin’ Avenue notes that on this date in Mets history, New York played the Cubs in the first night game in Wrigley Field history.
• Metsblog has a quote from Jose Reyes talking about Ruben Tejada.
• The Bitter Bill asks a few questions that must be answered for the benefit of the future of the Mets.
• Mets Police points out some of the good things the Mets do for their community.
• NY Sports World gives us several reasons (besides masochism) to continue to watch the 2012 Mets.

That’s all for today.  Enjoy today’s edition of “Lunch with the Mets,” and keep checking out Mets Today.

RHP Dillon Gee has been hospitalized with numbness in the fingers of his throwing hand, according to Adam Rubin and multiple sources in the Mets organization.

Manager Terry Collins said Gee is due to undergo an angiogram.

“They aren’t sure what it is yet,” Collins said.

According to Rubin, “A teammate said the issue was believed to be blood-related in Gee’s shoulder. Another member of the organization said Gee was admitted to the hospital Monday and underwent an MRI.”

Bobby Parnell had a similar malady early last year, and had to spend time on the DL.  This type of issue is usually related to a circulatory problem.

Gee was scheduled to pitch the first game after the All-Star Break in place of Johan Santana, who is already nursing a bum ankle that was hit by a batted ball he hurt covering first.

With Gee potentially on track to miss that start, and Santana already hurt, the stalwart Mets rotation suddenly seems a little unstable.  It’s too early to tell what impact this episode is going to have on Gee’s spot in the rotation, but the Mets may need some reinforcements sooner than later.  It may be time for another spot start by Miguel Batista.  Or it may be time for the dawn of the Matt Harvey Era.

Harvey has pitched well for the Buffalo Bisons, and is chomping at the bit to prove himself in the majors.  Harvey is 7-4 with a 3.39 ERA, .234 BA against, and 102 Ks in 98.1 innings.

The Mets may balk at bringing him up after only 98 innings at Triple-A.  The Alderson regime has been cautious with its most prized prospects, which is the right approach.  The Mets are playing competitive baseball in 2012, but the focus of this team is on 2013 and 2014, as it has been since the offseason.

But it all depends on Gee’s status coming out of the All-Star break.

Update (12:05PM): According to Mike Kerwick, Gee will not make his next start.  Chris Schwinden, anyone?

Update (12:18PM): According to Adam Rubin, Doctors found a clot in an artery in his right shoulder.  Sounds like it could have been a lot worse than just numbness in his fingers.  Doctors cleared the clot with a catheter.  Fortunately, Dillon’s OK.

Update (12:24PM): Gee will be placed on the DL.  Here is the Mets’ official statement:

“On Sunday, Dillon Gee complained of numbness in the fingers of his right hand. Yesterday, after extensive testing, Dillon was found to have a clot in an artery in his right shoulder and doctors at New York-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City used a catheter to break up the clot. Dillon will remain hospitalized for the next day or two to ensure that the clot is fully resolved. Dillon will not make his next start and will be placed on the disabled list. The timing of his return to baseball activity is currently undetermined.”

The first half of the 2012 season is in the can, and the Mets are a respectable 46-40, sitting in third place in the NL East, 5 games behind the Washington Nationals.  They’ve certainly exceeded expectations.  This year’s edition of the Mets is loaded with overachievers, like Ruben Tejada, Scott Hairston, Kirk Nieuwenhuis, and R.A. Dickey, as well as established veterans having bounceback seasons, like David Wright and Johan Santana.  They’ve had this success despite the early struggles of their bullpen, and the fact that they tend to play down to their competition (They’ve lost 7 games combined to the Astros and Cubs, each of whom have sub-.400 winning percentages).  And, unlike last year, the Mets are trade-market buyers at the midway point of the season.  So, fasten your seatbelts for half number two of the 2012 season.

The Blogs are strapped in:

• Kerel Cooper looks a the top 5 surprises of the first half.
• Metsblog reports that Jon Rauch was involved in a minor car accident.  No word if Duaner Sanchez was involved.
• Rising Apple plays the role of contrarian and suggests the Mets DON’T trade Justin Turner.
• Amazin’ Avenue has a recap of Sandy Alderson’s interview on SNY.
• MLB Trade Rumors heard the Mets have an interest in Rockies’ catcher Ramon Hernandez.
• New York Magazine takes a look at Williamsburg Night at Thursday’s Cyclones game.

Enjoy the All-Star game, and keep checking out Mets Today for all the latest Mets stuff in the second half.

Dodger Stadium

The Mets (40-36, 3rd place in the N.L. East) begin a 4-game set with the Dodgers (43-33, 1st place in the N.L. West) in Los Angeles tonight at 10:10 PM EDT.

The Dodgers have lost 8 of their last 9 games, and are coming off a sweep at the hands of the San Francisco Giants.  This recent run of games dropped the Dodgers into a first place tie with the Giants, after L.A. had held a steady lead in the N.L. West for the first 3 months of the season.

The Mets followed their 4-game winning streak with a 4-game losing streak.  They lost 2 in a row to the last-place Cubs before steamrolling them in game 3 of the series.

R.A. Dickey pitched another routine gem last night, allowing a controversial infield hit to B.J. Upton in the first, then allowed an unearned run in the ninth after a David Wright error and two passed balls.  As the Rays radio announcer put it, the only chance Tampa Bay had was if Dickey accidentally locked himself in the bathroom.  The Rays had no chance against R.A.’s knucklers.  Dickey and Chris Young (with a big assist from the bullpen) have taken the first two games in St. Pete, as they try to bounce back from a stretch in which they lost 6 of 7.

• MMO, speaking of announcers, likes the fact that two lifelong Mets fans are in the booth for New York.
• Mets Cetera compares the recent dominance of Dickey and Johan Santana.
• Big Lead Sports thinks appealing last night’s infield hit is bush league.
• Metstradamus recounts his experience at Tropicana Field last night.
• Kerel Cooper talks about Daniel Murphy.
• Daily Stache feels Kirk Nieuwenhuis has proven himself worthy to stay in the majors.

And for more worthy coverage of the Mets, keep checking out Mets Today.

Imagine the Mets are Mr. Worf, and their June opponents are the guys with the pain sticks.

The Mets continue their journey through the gauntlet that is their June schedule with a 3-game set against the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Pete.

They are 4-6 so far this month against opponents like the World Champion Cardinals, the first place Nationals, and the always formidable Yankees.  Those 6 losses have come in their last 7 games.  Now they have to play another AL East powerhouse on the road.  It’s as if the Mets are going through some kind of rite of passage.  How they stand up over the next couple of weeks will tell us more about this team.

This series features a couple of marquis pitching matchups.  On Wednesday, red-hot R.A. Dickey faces off against the nasty left-hander, David Price.  On Thursday, Johan Santana takes on Jeremy Hellickson, who’s having a great year.

New York Mets

After getting swept out of the Bronx, the Mets are now in 3rd place in the NL East, 5 games behind Washington.

Who’s Hot (Last 10 games):

• David Wright – .306, 3 HR, 4 RBI
• Lucas Duda – .286, 3 HR, 10 RBI
• R.A. Dickey – 24.2 consecutive scoreless innings, 3 walks and 38 strikeouts over his last 4 starts

Tampa Bay Rays

The Rays are coming off a sweep of the Amazing Technicolor Marlins, and have won their last 4 overall.  They currently reside in a first place tie with the Bombers in the AL East.

Who’s Hot (Last 10 games)

• David Price – 2 wins, 0.73 ERA, 13 strikeouts in his last 12.1 innings pitched
• Elliot Johnson – .321, 1 HR, 7 RBI
• Ben Zobrist – .290, 2 HR, 6 RBI

Pitching Matchups

Tues, June 12, 7:10 PM: Chris Young (0-0, 3.60 ERA) vs. Alex Cobb (2-2, 4.13 ERA)

Wed, June 13, 7:10 PM: R.A. Dickey (9-1, 2.44 ERA) vs. David Price (8-3, 2.40 ERA)

Thurs, June 14 1:10 PM: Johan Santana (3-3, 2.96 ERA) vs. Jeremy Hellickson (4-2, 2.65)

David Wright is off to a great start.

28 games into the season, the Mets are 15-13, sitting in third place in the NL East.  And if it weren’t early May, I’d say something like, “if the season were to end today, the Mets would be the second Wildcard team.”  But it is only early May.  With that said, let’s take a look at the current state of the team.

Positives

First, the good news.  The Mets are exceeding expectations.  Yes, the expectations were low, but expectations are being exceeded nonetheless.

They went 13-10 in April, which isn’t bad in and of itself.  However, according to the May 7th issue of Sports Illustrated, they faced the 4th toughest schedule by winning percentage (.535) in the major leagues.  Meanwhile, the Dodgers and Nationals, teams that got off to screaming hot starts,  faced the 30th and 29th toughest schedules, respectively.

Individually, several players are off to great starts in 2012.  David Wright is off to one of the best starts of his career, hitting .375/.481/.545 with a team-leading 14 RBI.  Daniel Murphy is hitting .315/.358/.378.  The Mets need more extra base hits out of Murphy, but it’s hard to be dissatisfied with his average and OBP.  In addition, he’s played a surprisingly competent second base.  He hasn’t been without errors, but like his team, he has exceeded expectations.  Similarly, Josh Thole (.282/.356/.372) has performed well at the plate, while showing improvement behind it.