Alive

Written by Benny B. | 01 April 2010

Daniel Murphy, the Mets quasi-first basemen, was diagnosed with a grade 1 sprain of his MCL and will be out 2-6 weeks. In other news Mets management has decided to be prudent for a change and "take it slow" with Jose Reyes. He will only appear in Minor League rehab games in order to make his DL stint retroactive.  If all goes according to plan, Jose will be in uniform the 6th game of the season vs. the Washington Nationals.

First, Daniel Murphy:  I like him. It's hard not to.  He is always working hard trying to improve his game offensively and defensively.  He was just starting to get hot after a dreadful spring training.  And now he is out 2-6 weeks.  I feel bad for him, I really do.  But lets get real.  Everyone including Murphy's mother knows that it is only a matter of time before Ike Davis is manning first base.  I don't know how to say this without sounding like a dick, but here goes:  If someone said one Mets player is going to be injured to start the season, and I had to choose, I would choose Murphy.  Ike Davis absolutely murdered the ball this spring going .480/.536/.960 with 3 HRs.  Yes, spring training is spring training, BUT, there is not a single Mets fan that isn't excited about this kid.  And if Murphy's injury helps him get to the bigs a little quicker, so be it.  So it looks like Mike Jacobs is slated to be the starting first baseman.  BAD IDEA.  Yes way back when he hit 32 Homer Runs.  Yippie!  But that is all he does, and he was cut by arguably the WORST team in the AL, The Royals.  Ted berg put it best here:

...be it Jacobs or Catalanotto or (fingers crossed) longshot candidate Chris Carter — will see some time at first. If it’s Jacobs, he’ll hit home runs and play poor defense. If it’s Catalanotto, he’ll get on base and play better defense than Jacobs. If it’s Carter, he’ll likely hit more home runs than Catalanotto but fewer than Jacobs while playing better defense than Jacobs but worse defense than Catalanotto.

I too am hoping for Carter.  He's relatively young (27) and has also been mashing in his limited playing time .407/.448/.926 with 4 HRs. At the very least, he should be the last bench spot.  But instead, it looks like Jacobs and his .194 batting average will be starting there because of past accomplishments.  It's foolish move by management, but I see this as a win-win.  If Jacobs starts mashing, great!  He helps the team.  If he is stinks it up, great!  Cut him.  He helps the team by facilitating the arrival of "We like" Ike Davis.

Now Reyes:  Would I have liked to see him opening day? Sure.  Could he have possibly been ready to play Opening Day?  Yup.  Am I upset about the decision?  No.  5 games is a small price to pay to ensure that Jose's strength is at full capacity.  He is in great shape and will most likely be batting lead off, but hopefully Jerry has not trashed the logical idea of hitting him 3rd until Beltran returns.  The move to start him on the DL is not a surprise--many conservative bloggers and beat writers have lobbied for this.  However, if you read the NY papers today you would think that the entire Mets team plane crashed into the Andes and are now eating their departed teammates to survive (too bad Ramon Castro and Livan Hernandez weren't on the plane...they would have fed the entire team till the summer thaw).

All in all, the Mets have had very few injuries this spring.  Escobar was an injury risk when they signed him. Reyes thryoid is a non-baseball related matter, and you know how I feel about Murphy.  Beltran is obviously the biggest loss, but reports are that his is on/ahead of schedule.  He took indoor batting practice for the first time yesterday and I hope to see him patrolling center field mid-may.  Yes, the bullpen is "unsettled", but I could care less.  The Mets have more options and depth in the pen than they have had in a long time.  In fact, the Mets have depth this year across the board with young MLB-ready talent waiting should starters falter/get injured...that is everywhere EXCEPT the starting rotation which is the biggest question mark.  It would be wise for the mets to acquire a legit #2 starter as soon as possible.

The Mets have flaws, as do most teams....maybe more than most teams.  This is an important year for the entire Mets organization.  I know it is painful for the Mets-faithful, but check out this graphic. The Mets were in first place May 18th, and were in contention until the middle of June.  From there it was a slow & painful decline which does not have to be recounted.  If they can stay healthy and the pitching is satisfactory, they should be in the mix all year.  Regardless, I am tired of all the guessing and the analysis.  It's time to get this show on the road.  It's time to play ball.  LETS GO METS!